How Kenya, Ethiopia are turning textile waste into jobs

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Kenya and Ethiopia are integrating green and circular-economy skills into vocational training to equip young people with skills to turn textile waste into marketable products and businesses.

So far, 4,600 learners have been reached through the programme, which uses fabric offcuts, discarded textiles and other waste as raw materials for fashion products while training learners in fashion design, textile production, textile dyeing and circular entrepreneurship.

The initiative has reached more than 50 vocational colleges in the two countries, trained 500 vocational teachers and supported 33 start-ups and 20 textile companies with circular skills and entrepreneurship training.

The progress was discussed during a cross-border Green Skills Learning Forum that brought together government officials, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions, private-sector representatives and development partners from Kenya and Ethiopia.

Nelius Wangare of Kisumu National Polytechnic said institutions were developing curricula on textile and green skills to promote circular fashion design while incorporating digital skills into training.

The programme has developed three green training modules covering fashion design, textile production and textile dyeing for use in Kenya and Ethiopia.

Recycled fashion products and other materials made from textile and plastic waste were also showcased at the forum, demonstrating how discarded materials can be converted into products for the market.

Edukans Kenya Country Director Mary Mugo said the approach could help address unemployment while reducing pollution.

“Wear the Green Future is not just about protecting the environment. It is about giving young people relevant skills for today’s economy which enable them to use sustainable textiles with ease and come up with innovations to scale up the greening,” Mugo said.

“When a young person learns to recycle waste into a product that sells, we solve unemployment and pollution at the same time,” she added.

Mugo said Kenya and Ethiopia should exchange lessons on the green transition, noting that both countries could benefit from sharing approaches to green skills and sustainable production.

The forum examined the integration of green skills into curricula, links between training institutions and industry, and sustainable waste management.

Edukans said some learners who have undergone the programme have used the skills to establish green enterprises and employ others.

The programme is part of Edukans' wider efforts to support a more sustainable textile and fashion industry in Kenya and Ethiopia. According to its 2025 report, the initiative also contributed to efforts to embed circular education in Kenya's Cotton, Textile and Clothing Policy.

The forum ended with a declaration calling for the promotion of green skills and the removal of barriers facing women and marginalised groups in the sector.