Amid the characteristic hustle and bustle of Xipamanine market, Maputo’s largest informal trading hub, Olinda Matule sells second-hand clothing and single-handedly supports her children — a living example of an activity that generates income and opportunities for thousands of Mozambicans.
“Through selling clothes, I managed to build my house and raise my children, because I’m both separated and widowed. I was able to achieve a lot,” Olinda Matule told Lusa during another visit to the warehouses of the international NGO ADPP, where she has been buying clothing bales for at least three years.
Having sold at Xipamanine market for over 30 years, leaning against one of the countless stalls in the square, 59-year-old Olinda explains that she has never suffered prejudice because of her business, mainly because she always has “clean and beautiful clothes” at her stand.
According to her, the most sought-after items are swimsuits and Indian clothes, and sometimes it’s possible to find branded garments inside the bales.
Saquina Davide, 27, also decided to enter the second-hand clothing business a few months ago, although she had been shopping for at least two years at ADPP’s store in the Machava neighborhood, on the outskirts of Maputo, where she highlights “several benefits,” particularly price, quality, and exclusivity.
“I only started this year. For example, today the clothes cost 25 meticais [€0.30]. I can buy twenty pieces, but when I resell them, of course the price won’t be 25 meticais, but 100 meticais [€1.30],” Saquina told Lusa, while carefully scanning racks filled with colorful fabrics, searching for unique items to please her customers.
At the same store, Vasco Muchamo, 36, also shops, rummaging mainly for men’s T-shirts.
Focusing on children’s clothing, Muchamo says he has forgotten the exact year he started in the trade, noting only that “it’s been a very long time.”
“You need patience, even to choose. It’s not easy. A lot of patience is required,” he stressed.
For Vasco, these shops are essential in helping low-income people dress well, since there are many who “can’t afford to enter stores and pay high prices.”
Stories like these are repeated in ADPP’s wholesale outlets across the country, where — in addition to clothing — hope and opportunities are offered to more than 200,000 people who benefit directly and indirectly from this business, according to Damião Mabote, Program Officer at ADPP Mozambique.
“With this income, they educate their children. We have success stories of even university graduates whose education was supported by the second-hand clothing trade,” he explained.
According to Mabote, the project, introduced in Mozambique more than 30 years ago, also sustains social and educational initiatives.
“ADPP operates 11 teacher training colleges, which also depend on revenue from second-hand clothing sales. It also has other education projects that rely on funds generated from this trade,” he said.
For Mabote, the “reuse” of second-hand clothing also has a significant environmental impact.
“We know that producing new clothes requires many resources, especially water. So when we reuse second-hand clothing, we avoid producing new garments and prevent further damage to the environment,” he concluded.
Source: Lusa
