Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State, Southwest Nigeria, has urged the Federal Government to adopt Adire (tie and dye) fabric as the official attire for national events to promote local production.
Gatekeepers News reports that Governor Abiodun made the appeal on Thursday at the Adire market week opening ceremony in Ogun state.
He expressed concern over what he described as the adulteration of the fabric, saying there is a need to address the effects of such activities on local production.
According to him, when he assumed office in 2019, findings revealed that “Adire production was suffering a setback — setback described as those that would come in to steal the designs, copy it and bring it back to us”.
“The foreign thieves — I will not be particular about the nationalities — but what I would say is that we are deeply committed to working with the national assembly and customs to stop this stealing,” he added.
According to him, “the high volume of adulterated Adire fabrics by foreigners has caused monumental loss to local producers”.
“I urge the national assembly and other government functionaries to adopt Adire as official attire for national events in the country, just as we’re doing in Ogun state,” he said.
Abiodun applauded the stakeholders behind the Adire market week, including Bamidele, his wife, adding that local producers have contributed significantly to “the continuous and successful building of our future together”.
Gatekeepers News reports that the State had in November 2020 adopted the use of Adire fabric as part of uniforms for schools.
