During this Ethiopian dry season (Bega) and the time of Timket celebration takes place different Ethiopian cultural cloths are widely seen worn by a lot of people. Tourists from abroad also seen adorned with the tri-colored Ethiopian cultural cloths. Timket is the foremost opportunity to showcase how the country is rich with diversified cultural clothing. During Timket and other holidays, the market for different cultural dresses increases. Producers and shop owners work 24/7 to meet deadline and deliver their customers’ orders to the holiday.
Currently, people are giving value to their culture and cultural identities. Following this, the culture sector is gaining more attention year after year. Most individuals nowadays say that they enjoy and prefer having cultural clothes, adornments, music, dances, meal, gift articles, among others in their day-to-day activities.
Thus, the production and supply of traditional dress is blossoming business to individuals throughout the country. It is common to see cultural cloths and gift articles shops widely in Addis Ababa and other cities. More importantly, the presence of the infamous and exclusively cultural dresses market place, Shiro Meda in Addis Ababa demonstrates how much the sector gains momentum in Ethiopia. There are also dispersed and exclusive traditional dress shops here and there.
The price of traditional dresses is also increasing year after year following people’s exceeding attention to have one and even extra. Especially during weddings, New Year and other holiday celebration seasons, individuals want to show up with their special traditional dress and make the celebration memorable.
The sector is generating a considerable income to the business practitioners. The price of women’s cultural dress ranges from 2,000-20,000 Birr considering its size, quality and decorative design. To this end, customers complain over the unaffordable prices.
Traditional dress manufacturers and designers are growing massively as the sector is gaining more attention from customers. The designers come up with a new decorative design and fashion to win customers’ demand by utilizing their wealth of talent in the industry.
The culture industry is witnessing tremendous job opportunities created. Most of the traditional dresses producers and sellers at Shiro Meda are family run businesses. Running a successful traditional dress industry demands diversified man power to handle the decoration, sewing, marketing, and other activities, explained shop owners in Shiro Meda.
Compared to the availability of potential cotton production, wide unemployed youths and competitive demand to the traditional dresses among peoples; the government is expected to explore ways of developing the sector.
The traditional dress business practitioners explained that the shortage of raw materials like cotton, technical equipment used for weaving, suitable displaying areas for their cloth, among others are the major challenges to the development of the sector.
Entoto Street Cooperative Union Manager, Tewodros Sisay said that he works as a weaver for a living. The business is his major source of income and he has a plan to expand it.
He said that the growing unaffordability in price might affect to run the business properly.
“Even if there is a huge demand from the customers, the price hike in traditional dresses makes them shy away from buying their choice.”
He urged the concerned body to pay attention and resolve cultural cloth manufacturing inputs constraint.
The Ethiopian Herald January 30/2020
BY TEWODROS KASSA
