Teresia Njenga, president of the Kenya Mitumba Association, at a press conference in July 2020 where she called for the ban on importing popular second-hand clothing to be lifted. (Photo: KTN News)
Kenya officials are under pressure rescind the ban on importing second-hand clothes, popularly known in the country as “mitumba”.
The government imposed the ban. in March 2020, quoting he COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2019 the country imported 184,555 tons of second-hand clothes with an estimated value of KSh17.8 billion, according to official data. It was one of the country’s top 20 imports.
Second-hand clothing sellers have criticized the ban as harsh, arguing that imported clothing does not pose a risk to public health.
“The latest scientific opinion indicates that the importation of second-hand clothing and shoes into Kenya does not represent a credible risk to public health,” said Teresia Njenga, president of the Kenya Mitumba Association.
This is because the products are shipped “for an average of 45 days” and in “sealed containers”. told reporters in July 2020.
“Scientific evidence concludes that the Covid-19 virus cannot survive on an inanimate object for more than nine days. In addition, in the period since March, the World Health Organization it has not prohibited the movement of goods or merchandise as a measure to contain the spread of Covid-19, ”said Njenga.
We check to see if the evidence fits these claims.
(Note: We have asked the organization for the source of your complaint about how long the new coronavirus survives and we will update this report with your response.)
Covid-19 survival on surfaces similar to other coronaviruses
According to a team of global health experts At the Meedan Digital Health Laboratory, SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, can survive from three hours to seven days. The laboratory works to simplify health and medical science.
According to April 2020 Guide by the World Health Organization, or WHO, the survival of the virus “on surfaces is similar to that of SARS-CoV1, the virus that causes severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars).” This varies from two hours to nine days.
To support this observation, WHO cited two studies. Africa Check contacted two of the experts involved.
Usually little risk beyond 1-2 days, expert says
Dr. Vincent Munster, head of the virus ecology unit in the U.S National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, co-author of April 2020 paper, Aerosol and surface stability of SARS-CoV-2 compared to SARS-CoV-1.
The document found that SARS-CoV-2 remained viable for periods similar to SARS-CoV-1, the virus that causes Sars.
Munster told Africa Check that “there was no risk associated with importing these or other goods.” This is because “SARS-CoV-2 typically cannot survive more than a day or two.”
‘Very true’ with no risk of virus survival after 9 days
Dr. Günter Kampf, professor of the Institute of Hygiene and Environmental Medicine. at Greifswald university in Germany, co-author of a paper titled Persistence of coronavirus on inanimate surfaces and its inactivation with biocidal agents.
Published in February 2020, it discovered that the SARS-CoV virus survived for six to nine days on plastic at room temperature. “We expect a similar effect against SARS-CoV-2,” the document concluded.
Kampf told Africa Check that the information has remained the same since the document was released. “As far as I know, a maximum of nine days is still correct,” he said.
Kampf referred us to a June 2020 document in textiles, how long can nosocomial pathogens survive in textiles? A systematic review.
(Note: according to WHO, nosocomial infections are those “acquired in the hospital by a patient who was admitted for a reason other than that infection”).
The document found that a coronavirus that is a clinical isolate of the SARS coronavirus survived in a cotton robe for 24 hours However, the document did not specify how long coronaviruses survived in synthetic fibers or mixed fibers and others.
Kampf told Africa Check that with all the data currently released, he was “pretty sure” that the Covid-19 virus could only survive a maximum of nine days on all the material analyzed.
Conclusion: Covid-19 evidence will not survive more than nine days in textiles
Pressing for the lifting of the ban on importing second-hand clothing into Kenya, an industry lobby said scientific evidence shows that the Covid-19 virus cannot survive on an inanimate object for more than nine days.
The government stopped popular imports in March 2020, citing the risk of infection with the new coronavirus.
Research trusted by the World Health Organization and experts supports the second-hand clothing lobby’s claim. Therefore, we rate it as correct.
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