Dedo Kofi brought culture and tradition alive at the International Women’s Conference in Dubai with an exotic varicoloured kente fabric fashioned to mimic the attire worn during Dipo.
The pontifical feminine attire, conceptualized from the Dipo wear, was draped with handwoven kente fabric from one of Ghana’s best weavers, Gobe Kente.
At first glance, one can mistake Dedo Kofi for wearing nothing above and beneath the corseted kente belt. A deceptiveness was achieved by plain, skin-coloured tights and hugging top to represent the bare-chestedness of the original Dipo participants.
See below for the video as shared on Instagram by @goba_kente.
Like the traditional looks, this modern design was accentuated by a long string of waist beads wound around her waist with similar colourful beads adorning her wrists and ankles.
What is Dipo?
Dipo is a puberty rite of passage practised by the Manya and Yilo Krobo of Krobo Odumase and Somanya in the Eastern Region of Ghana. This event lasts for a total of four days.
According to the journal, Brill.com girls are taught feminine hygiene practices as well as childbearing and home-keeping qualities.
Teenage girls go through the rites by wearing beads around their waist. The cover their mid-section with scanty cloth leaving their chests bare.
Berla Mundi dresses like a Dipo girl
Dede Kofi is not alone in this venture of ‘modernising’ the Dipo wear. Prior to her, Berla Mundi had also done something similar.
The TV3 presenter once rocked a Dipo outfit during a cultural heritage show on the station’s morning show.
Her photos got followers reacting with positive feedback an praises.