Ghana’s informal economy has suffered an enormous blow after a fire engulfed the Kantamanto used clothes market in the capital on Thursday, destroying more than 100 shops and goods worth millions of the local cedi currency. Thousands of traders have lost their livelihoods.

The fire swept through the bustling Kantamanto Market early on Thursday morning, reducing much of it to ashes.

Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) deployed 13 fire tenders to bring the flames under control.

Goods worth millions of the local cedi currency have been destroyed, the GNFS said.

“This is devastating,” said Alex King Nartey, a GNFS spokesperson. “We’ve not recorded severe casualties, but the economic loss is enormous.”

“Preliminary investigations suggest faulty electrical connections might have sparked the blaze, although we are not ruling out arson,” Nartey told France’s AFP news agency.

Little remains of the more than 2,000 shops in the open-air market – a hub of Ghana’s informal economy.

People were flocking, many in tears, to assess the damage, RFI correspondent Victor Cariou reported.

In the middle of the ruins, a large crowd of young scrap metal dealers were trying, on Thursday, to salvage anything they could to try and sell it on.

Around 10,000 people depend on the market to earn a living, local business associations estimate. Hundreds of traders, many specialising in the resale of used clothes, now face an uncertain future.

Richard Amo Yartey, an official with the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), said they were investigating the cause of the incident in collaboration with other agencies. “The scale of destruction is heart-wrenching, but we are committed to identifying the root cause and providing immediate relief to affected traders,” he said.

The president of the Traders Advocacy Group Ghana (TAGG), David Kwadwo Amoateng, urged the government to act swiftly, adding that the “market is a vital part of our economy”.

Kantamanto Market, which is home to over 30,000 traders, has been a lifeline for many in Accra’s Central Business District. The government is yet to announce a formal response to the tragedy. About 15 million items of second-hand clothing arrive in Ghana each week, mainly from Europe. However, nearly half cannot be resold.