TaTU Fashion Department showcases the creativity of final year students’ products

The Department of Fashion Design and Technology at Tamale Technical University (TaTU) has held its Annual Fashion Exhibition with a call government and the private sectors to support youth development in fashion entrepreneurship.

The event on the theme "Global Threads, Local Roots," aimed at showcasing the creative prowess and technical expertise of final-year students while bridging the gap between international fashion trends and Ghanaian cultural heritage.

Also, to embrace global fashion innovations, techniques, and sustainability practices while remaining firmly anchored in Ghana's rich textile traditions, local fabrics, and indigenous design aesthetics.

The event was used to exhibit a diverse range of fashion collections, including classic outfits, local fabrics, and innovative designs incorporating technology and sustainable materials. This exhibition served as a platform for the final year students to demonstrate their talents before graduation and promotes both local culture and entrepreneurship in the fashion industry.

Speaking at the ceremony, Inspector General of Schools, National Schools Inspectorate Authority (NASIA) Prof. Tahiru Salifu Azeko commended management of the University for nurturing future fashion entrepreneurs to create job opportunities instead of becoming job seekers.

“This tells us that as a nation, we need to focus on hands-on practical training that would deter the youth from seeking for white colour jobs. When we train the students to complete, they would be able to employ themselves”, he said

Government he said, would not relent on its commitment to invest in technical and vocational education to groom more future fashion entrepreneurs with knowledge in technology to meet the international standards.

He noted that fashion students would be added to the upcoming national and regional

In order to ensure quality standards are adhered, we would be liaising with the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education (CTVET to add TVET institutions to include fashion departments to the school awards programme, he said.

Head of Department of Textile, TaTU, Prof. Abukari A. Aziz Danaa said, the world’s most celebrated fashion brands are those that remain authentic to their identity while embracing innovation.

“Our fugu, kente,adinkra and other indigenous textiles are more than fabrics woven to express the cultural identity of the country”, he said.

When these local treasures are reimagined through creativity and contemporary design, the become global threads that showcase Ghanaian excellence on the world stage, he added.

He urged the youth and students to draw inspiration from their culture, embrace innovation and never underestimate the value of their identity.

As educators, industry practitioners, and policymakers, we have the shared responsibility to create an environment where the talents of the youth can flourish, he noted.

He called for collaborations to strengthen the support for local productions, embracing of digital technologies and encouragement to the entrepreneurs to equip them to be job creators and not seekers for the sustainability of the fashion business.

A Lecturer at Department of Fashion Dr. Justine Abaguri Adjuri called for support in training future fashion designers to enable them produce quality design to meet the demand of the global market

Dr. Francis Kwekue Kokro Head of Department, Department of Fashion at TaTU said, the fashion industry employed many people in its value chain from production to design and marketing with many students from the department becoming entrepreneurs.

He noted that, the department designed the programmes to accentuate the fashion value chain to help students get ready for the market after school.

With the Fashion Department, we provide the capacity, build the creativity with the strength as a fashion designer to become an entrepreneur, he added.

We are optimistic that after graduation, the students would not waste time seeking hardly available employments opportunities but would create their businesses, he said.