The Department of Fashion Design and Textiles Education (DFDTE), Faculty of Vocational Education (FVE) of the Akenten Appiah–Menka University of Skills Training and Entrepreneurial Development (AAMUSTED) has organised an exciting Exhibition and Fashion Show for final-year undergraduate students of the Department.
The Exhibition and the Fashion Show are platforms DFDTE creates annually for its final-year students to showcase, in practical terms, the skills and knowledge that they acquire over the four-year programme.
Unlike previously, this year’s Exhibition and the Fashion Show were organised outdoor because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The July 23, 2021, outdoor event turned out a seller with an appreciable crowd being drawn to the AAMUSTED Ceremonial Grounds to savour the brilliance on display.
Artworks, including paintings, leather cum fabric handbags, beads, trinkets, wigs, printed fabrics, etc., were displayed for public viewing and sales. The Fashion Show, which was under the theme – Creativity: The Hallmark of a Designer, saw the students thrilling the crowd to spectacular designs for children for all occasions, official wears, and casual wears.
The Dean of FVE, Dr. Gilbert Owiah Sampson, so impressed, happily indicated that the excellence displayed by the students was an attestation to the hard work done by the staff of DFDTE. He was optimistic that after graduation, the students would not waste time seeking hardly available employments opportunities but would create their businesses.
He said the fashion industry employed many people in its value chain (from production to design and marketing), explaining that the University had deliberately designed its programmes to accentuate the fashion value chain to help students ready themselves for life after school.
He encouraged the Ghanaian youth to focus much on Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Programmes on offer at AAMUSTED since they guaranteed graduates better lives upon completion.
Dr. Sampson was full of praise for the Vice-Chancellor of AAMUSTED, Prof. Frederick Kwaku Sarfo, for the exceptional leadership he was demonstrating as leader of AAMUSTED. He was particularly impressed by his (Prof. Sarfo) drive to attract more students into AAMUSTED.
The Head of DFDTE, Dr. Josephine A. Ntiri, said the Department would continue to explore ways to improve the annual exhibition and fashion show. Following the event, she observed that some students had struck good deals that helped them even after school.
She praised the final-year students for their hard work and exceptional display. Dr. Ntiri asked the public to disabuse their minds off the wrong perception that persons who pursue TVET programmes are less intelligent.
The President of the Fashion Design Students Association (FADSA), Mr. Lordfred Kwame Osei, thanked the staff of DFDTE for the support they offered students during the programmes. He encouraged both students and staff to pay attention to the Fashion Show and Exhibition because it opens branding and marketing opportunities to the students especially.
As a precursor to the Exhibition and Fashion, FADSA and DFDTE collaborated to organize a fashion seminar for the students on July 22, 2021. Two popular fashion industry icons, Mr. Justice Amoah and Oheneba Yaw Boamah, a.k.a. Abrantie Designs, spoke on Fashion, a Tool for Communication, and the Portrait to Success, respectively.