One of the causes of the dearth of the local textile industry is the rising cost of raw material input. Some of the weaving artisans in the Northern part of Nigeria have lamented about this.
The development of textiles, using readily available up-cycled or converted waste material is one way to tackle such concerns.
The new textiles with raw material input such as invasive water weeds, agro-waste, etc. could be described as inherently green and sustainable with the combination of readily available recycled material and the existing traditional crafting skills.
Many local communities are rich with various kinds of crafting skills especially in the area of woven fibre and woven cloth.
We have taken exciting steps at MitiMeth in this direction and continue to work out innovative ways to do this.
Colourful Loom-Woven Water Hyacinth Bundles
Developing eco-friendly and ethical weaving fibres from Water Hyacinth, Typha Grass, etc. creates a starting point for innovative and creative ways to move in the direction of developing green textiles and resulting products like one of our recent Water Hyacinth and Leather Bags.
Patchwork Bag made with Loom-Woven Water Hyacinth and Leather.
Building on this development and transferring the knowledge and skills through training programs supports the establishment of sustainable enterprises.
Developing Green Textiles gives rise to an all round winning situation: waste is reduced, many unique indigenous skills are kept going and in some cases revived with the opportunity to be appreciated, and a thriving artisan economy is supported.