After 500 years, Kano dyeing business is dying

The trade of dyeing started in 1498 at the Kofar Mata area and from there it spread to other parts of the state to meet the needs of the people. Records have it that it was from there that the traditional dyeing spread to other parts of the Northern states, thus the dyers contributed in […]

The trade of dyeing started in 1498 at the Kofar Mata area and from there it spread to other parts of the state to meet the needs of the people. Records have it that it was from there that the traditional dyeing spread to other parts of the Northern states, thus the dyers contributed in the socio-economic development of the region.
Decades ago, over 10 major spots were in strategic locations across the 44 local government areas with the state’s metropolis having the highest number. The history of Kano State would be incomplete without mentioning the contribution of the local dyers.
According to traditional dyers, before the downturn, the business attracted customers from neighbouring countries like Niger, Senegal, Ghana, Chad and more. It was gathered that the business also attracts tourists from across the world, especially Europe.  
However, during a visit to the Kofar Mata dye pits, Daily Trust on Saturday discovered that commercial activities were at their lowest ebb. Out of the 140 dyeing pits, only six are being used, while the rest are filled with waste.  
It was observed that only three traditional dyers are working as at the time of the visit. Recalling the heyday of the business, Alhaji Audu Uba, 80, said when he joined the trade decades ago, it was lucrative and profitable. “Then our dye pits were as busy as Kantin Kwari Market in terms of commercial activities, but now we are only struggling to survive.”
Daily Trust on Saturday reports that majority of the traditional dyers inherited the business from their forefathers. Uba said: “I started coming here when I was eight, with my father who also inherited the business from his father. All of us at Kofar Mata inherited the business from our parents but now our children are not looking this way because of the dwindling fortunes of the trade,” he said.
Expressing fear that the trade may vanish completely in the near future, Uba said all the children he taught the dyeing trade have since abandoned it. “Most of them have since left because it is no longer profitable,” he said.
Another traditional dyer, Dahiru Yahaya, 58, said at moment most of his customers are from Niger Republic. “The fabrics I’m working on are for my customers from Niger Republic. I started this work with dyeing of caps 50 years ago when my father brought me here. It was from it I graduated to dyeing of cloth and now one of my children has shown interest in it,” he said, lamenting the decline of the trade.
The secretary of the Nigerian Pit Dyers Association, Haruna Bappa, identified lack of government intervention, training and capital as the banes of the business. “Our major challenges are insufficient buyers, lack of capital and training. Our foreign customers from Europe have stopped coming except those from neighbouring African countries that come around occasionally,” he said. “If we are supported, the business will bounce back and this is why we are urging government, the Kano Emirate Council and prominent individuals to rescue the trade by supporting us. Instead of struggling to buy foreign football clubs, come and invest here,” he said.
He urged the Emir of Kano, Malam Muhammad Sanusi II to mandate members of his emirate to use cloth dyed locally to sustain and promote their cultural heritage. “Traditional dyeing is a cultural heritage in Kano and we should do all we can to save it,” he said.
At the Kofar Mata pits, there was a woman who brought her children’s Eid attires for dyeing. Rabi Mohammed, who resides in Hotoro area of the state, said she brought the cloth so that it can last longer and look more vibrant.
Three decades ago, when the challenges facing traditional dyeing persisted, the dyers embraced modern chemicals and abandoned their pits for bowls. Now, they are into dyeing of brocades popularly known as ‘Ghalila brocade’ using chemicals sourced from abroad.
At first, the chemicals were imported from Germany almost 40 years ago, but about a decade ago, cheaper and low quality ones were brought in from China. Bappa said: “We started it about four decades ago when chemicals hydrosulphate and salt are used for dyeing. It was brighter and more qualitative than the modern dyed brocade because the chemicals were imported from Germany. As time went on, the Chinese men brought cheaper chemicals and dyers embraced their cheapness. Unlike chemicals brought from Germany, the Chinese ones fade after a few washes, earning the name ‘Wanke Kudin Ka’, which means ‘wash away your money’ in Hausa. The German chemicals are available but very expensive.”
Even the modern version of dyeing is being threatened by traders who flood the Nigerian market with dyed brocade from China. At the beginning, the Chinese traders supplied dyers with the dyes, but now they are importing dyed brocade from their own country. Worried by the trend, thousands of local dyers took to the streets protesting what they tagged the take-over of their means of livelihood by the Chinese.
According to Chairman of Dyers Association, Bashir Dauda Aliyu Dawakin Kudu, the Chinese traders also reduced the quality of the brocades they are supplying them for the making of the Ghalila version of the fabric. “They did that so that we cannot compete with them and they also increased the price, at the same time they started importing their own,” he said.
At the moment, the association puts the number of dyers in Kano to 30,000.
Tracing the history of dyeing in Kano, an official of Gidan Makama Museum, Mr. Dominic Yarima, said the dye pits, especially the ones at Kofar Mata, were established around 500 years ago. “It is one of the historical sites we have in Kano, where local materials are dyed using local materials like indigo, potash and ash. It was established in the 14 century,” Yarima said.
Daily Trust Saturday reports that unlike traditional dyeing that is passed down from generation to generation, the modern version is an all-comers affair, as many dyeing spots are springing up. Practitioners and other experts are of the view that if the downturn of traditional dyeing is not halted, in years to come, dyeing trade would die.