A fashion designer, Ronke Ademiluyi, says indecent dressing is not in tandem with African moral values and ethics.
Ademiluyi, said in Lagos that Nigerian fashion designers no longer create their wears to reflect African traditions but rather simply replicate foreign ideas.
According to her, African fashion should look different from their foreign counterparts with a lot of emphasis on time-tested cultural norms such as modesty and decency.
She noted with concern that the kind of African fashion being promoted by Nigerian fashion designers now offend people’s sensibility in stead of promoting the real style in African tradition due largely to imitation of foreign ideologies.
Ademiluyi, who is the founder of the African Fashion Week London/Nigeria said the outfit was in the process of partnering with Brazil to represent the country in a modest wear promotion programme.
“We’ve just been signed up to represent a modest wear brand, promoting modest wears in Nigeria, but you know with designers, it’s a personal thing,” she said.
She noted that though the various designers have their potentials, and could not be given strict rules, they were only advised or given guidelines before any fashion promotion.
“We give them guidelines but we can’t tell them what to do, though some people decide to impose themselves, some others decide to cover up.
“As much as we try to promote these designers, we also have guidelines, we encourage decency.
“You can`t bring anything too revealing unto our catwalk and our society will not even accept that so we try to give them guidelines,” she said.
Similarly, Aiki Odiawo, a co-promoter of Fashion Week London/Nigeria, said that fashion designers should create what suits the individuals rather than concentrating on styles.
“Honestly, so long as it makes you look good, feel good and reflects who you are as a person, that is the kind of fashion I will project,“ she said.
According to her, it is better to wear what suits you and what you are comfortable in and not what is in the trend of fashion.
She said that the invitation by Brazil was to organise specialised fashion week in Nigeria that would promote modest dressing.
“I know am not for nudity, so I will not be offending people’s sensibility, I can dress in hijab, Ankara wears, as long as we respect and protect our country’s values,’’ she said.
The African Fashion Week London/Nigeria, which promotes African fashion in the United Kingdom, organised 2017 Africa Fashion Week, Nigeria on April 1 and April 2.
The group organised seven promotions in the UK while four promotions were similarly organised in Nigeria
The show tagged, “The Iconic Catwalk Show” was a boost of Nigeria`s prints, fashion display and iconic sites to the international world.
According to the organisers, the Iconic Catwalk gives a platform for designers in Nigeria to express their history, culture and its relevance through fashion.
The show featured over ten fashion designers from Nigeria, Cameron and Zimbabwe. (NAN)