The SMOCK: Exploring an Indigenous Industry in Tamale Metropolis of Northern Ghana

Abstract

Textile industry has been an important source of livelihood in Ghana; however, little attention has been given to the traditional textiles sub-sector. Traditional textiles form sim portant enterprises built on cultural lines. This study assesses the traditional textile industry in Ghana, specifically the smock industry. The study examines the operations of the smock industry in Tamale Metropolis to understand its production structures. Explorative approach was adopted to get a deeper understanding of the industry. In this study, multi stage sampling involving the stratified, purposive, accidental and snowballing sampling techniques were adopted. The study revealed that, the smock industry is largely traditional and male dominated. The industry is built around its traditional structure in terms of weavers (producers of smock textiles) and merchants (producers and traders of smock garments).The main form of skill acquisition in the industry is inheritance with the dominant enterprise form being largely informal sole proprietorship. Though built on traditional structures, the industry is opening up to many people as females and different ethnicities now participate in various sections of its value chain. The drive to open up the industry also manifest in apprenticeship training giving by weavers and merchants. There is also the use of synthetic strings to weave as a way of responding to growing demand. Operations of the industry have been flexible enough to respond to changing demand of modernization to ensure it stays competitive enough in the market. Sustained efforts must therefore be made to understand the structures of indigenous industries to inform decision making.
Keywords: Traditional textiles, Smock, Tamale Metropolis, Indigenous Industry.