Who is winning the race of evolution in the textile and clothing industry in Africa?

The textile and clothing industry in Africa has experienced tremendous change over decades and will as the years passes.

Evolution can be best described as the gradual or directional change leading to a more advanced complex form. The study of the history of clothing and textiles traces the availability and the use of textiles and other materials and the development of technology for the making of clothing over human history, it is also important in human history and reflects the materials available to civilization as well as the technologies that had been mastered.

Textiles can be felt or spun, fibres made into yarn which in turn can be knitted or woven to make fabrics. Early woven fabric was made from traditional loomsand clothing from needle and thread.

The textile and clothing industry in Africa has experienced tremendous change over decades and will as the years passes by. Evidence of evolution in the clothing and textile industry in Egypt had a great impact in the world trade market, new and advanced spinning techniques has been employed and new age technologies has proven itself resourceful in terns or production.

In Ghana, kente was generally known to be their earliest indigenous fabric. The kente composition consist of a measured sequence of seven distinct warp strips and whose patterns are never nearly exactly replicated, Many advancement has been made on the kente fabric over recent years in Ghana due to the impact of globalization and advanced technologies used in dyeing , weaving and printing.

The story of the Nigerian Textile Industry started with the classification of traditional textiles into woven ,non woven, dyed or patterned which are decorated and designed structurally at the surface. These include the ;Asooke, adire , akwete and okene by the Ebira people.

These textiles are produced on both vertical and horizontal looms that are exclusively handled by women and men weavers in the society. These fabrics have have age long characteristics such as ; high durability, unique textures and traditional designs. Today there are industrial textiles produced through the use of automated electronic machines which usually comes in variety of colours, design and quality.

Acceptability of this advancement has not been fully achieved in some areas in Nigeria today. Evolution has for a long time been one of the limiting factors for a revolutionary change in the textile industry in the Nigeria. Comparing the level of change in the textile and clothing industry in different countries in Africa what can we say has been the level of change in the textile industry?

The clothing industry is an exciting area of constant change, creativity and global commercial activity. Skills in fashion or clothing are not enough to guarantee success. A major influence in the clothing business is the growth of the internet; this has in recent years influenced the flow of creative ideas, search for product information, price, supply chains and where customers can buy garments.

We can therefore say there has been evolution in our clothing industry in Nigeria but not in the textile industry, what country is then winning the race of evolution in Africa?