Sustainability in Ojude-Oba dress tradition and tourism

The Ijebu people are famous for celebrating the annual Ojude-Oba festival, with the precept of paying homage to the Monarch for over a century. The different age groups compete in a sustainable dress designed in traditional styles called aso-egbe. The festival attracts an unflinching crowd from home and abroad, featuring fashion parades and cultural shows. The paper documents the dress tradition of the age groups during the Ojude-Oba festival and its potential for tourism development in Ogun State and Nigeria at large. It revealed that the continued execution of this event has brought about tremendous development to Ijebu-Ode in trade, technology, commerce and industry as well as building a strong jingoistic spirit among the Ijebu populace. The dress-group model displayed during the event promotes culture and fashion sense. Designed from eco-friendly local materials it also reflects the class and opulence of individual groups. It communicates status, age, prestige, beauty and aesthetics. The study recommends the sustenance and promotion of traditional dress. The government should give deserved attention to events with a strong potential of attracting inbound tourists to enhance economic growth and development among Nigerians.

Automated summary

The Ijebu people are renowned for their annual Ojude-Oba festival, a century-old tradition that pays homage to the Monarch. During the festival, different age groups compete in sustainable, traditionally-designed attire known as aso-egbe. The event attracts a large crowd from both domestic and international locations, featuring fashion parades and cultural shows. This study highlights the traditional dress and its potential for tourism development in Ogun State and Nigeria, emphasizing the festival's contribution to trade, technology, commerce, industry, and fostering patriotism among the Ijebu community. The dress-group model displayed during the event promotes culture, fashion, and reflects individual groups' class and opulence, conveying status, age, prestige, beauty, and aesthetics. The study recommends the preservation and promotion of traditional dress, and advocates for government attention to events that can attract inbound tourists, thereby enhancing economic growth and development among Nigerians.