Recycled Textiles Association

Businesses across the international secondary materials and textile recycling sectors are expressing growing concern over ongoing restrictions and regulatory uncertainty affecting used textile and textile recycling operations within Pakistan's Export Processing Zones (EPZs), particularly in Karachi. Pakistan has long played an important role in the global circular textile economy and is a leader in the used textiles and clothing (UTC) sector.

GENEVA — Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles Association Vice President of Government & External Affairs Jessica Franken will attend the upcoming 15th Meeting of the Open-ended Working Group (OEWG-15) of the Basel Convention, where international discussions surrounding the regulation of used textiles and textile waste are expected to continue ahead of future decisions by parties to the convention. The meeting comes at a pivotal moment for the global secondhand clothing sector.

A major new study supported by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) is challenging long-standing claims that used clothing exports to Africa are largely made up of textile waste. The report, produced through the Sustainable Manufacturing and Environmental Pollution (SMEP) program in partnership with UNCTAD, analyzed more than 244,500 garments imported into Uganda and Tanzania and found that the overwhelming majority of items were suitable for reuse and resale.