Zambia’s president has weighed into a cultural debate that has erupted online after the president of Ghana arrived in Zambia wearing a traditional outfit called a fugu. Some Zambians mockingly called it a “blouse”.
But Zambia’s leader hit back by sharing his love for the design, saying he would be “ordering more of that stuff” for himself, in a video posted on X from the Ghana–Zambia Business Forum held in Lusaka this week.
Ghana’s foreign minister said the social media buzz was a sign that young people were keen to reclaim their cultural roots.
In Ghana itself, a move to encourage traditional outfits has led to “Fugu Friday”, which sees people wear African clothing.
Following days of online back and forth between netizens of the two countries, President Hakainde Hichilema expressed his admiration for the Ghanaian outfit.
“We’ll be ordering more fugu from Ghana following the social media conversations,” Hichilema said on Friday in Zambia’s capital, Lusaka.
When Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama arrived for a three-day State Visit on Wednesday, he was proudly sporting a fugu – a traditional northern Ghanaian outfit made from hand‑woven, narrow strips of thick cotton fabric stitched together to form a structured, poncho‑style garment.
By Anthony
