Everson Luhanga
The West African nation of Ghana has taken a bold step towards decolonization by introducing its own stylish African school uniforms.
The print African cloth used to make the uniforms is the same as that used to wrap around women’s waists, covering their skirts, in many African countries.
The cloth wrap (Zitenje) is mainly used in Malawi, Zambia, Tanzania, Mozambique, Ghana and other countries.
Men, especially from Ghana and Nigeria, have fashioned beautiful shirts out of the cloth.
With Ghana’s step to make uniforms out of Zitenje, many African countries will probably follow suit.
Most academics in Malawi have been advocating for Zitenje cloth to be the standard dress at school.
They say for decades, they have embraced western culture by wearing uniforms introduced to them by their colonisers.
One Ugandan Nine Chale said on social media: “This is impressive. The time has come for Africa to take off the shackles of mental slavery and go back to the roots of their tradition and culture.
“We don’t have to shun everything western but we can confidently embrace and uphold our style. The next thing we want to see is our judiciary getting rid of those ridiculous colonial wigs and replacing them with an authentic traditional African head gear.”
