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The purpose of this study is to investigate the physical, ultraviolet (UV), colour appearance and colour fastness properties of selected fabrics dyed with natural dyes from Daboya and Ntonso communities of Ghana. The study further highlights the rich cultural heritage of traditional dyeing from these two communities. Craftsmen in West Africa especially Ghana, have sustained the traditional dyeing methods to produce textile products for consumers.

In this study, two sample fabrics were purchased from craftsmen at Ntonso and Daboya communities in Ghana. These fabrics were analysed at the laboratory under standard test methods for their physical, UV, colour appearance and colour fastness properties.

Results showed that all the sample fabrics have good UV shielding performance (ratings above 50+). Daboya sample fabrics (dyed with indigo dyes) produced more colour stains than the sample fabrics from Ntonso (dyed with black “kuntunkuni” dyes). The K/S_sum value or colour yield reduced after washing but that alternatively increased the calculated ultraviolet protection factor.

Findings from this study exposed the unique UV performance of dyed traditional fabrics (using natural dyes) from Ntonso and Daboya communities in Ghana. This inspires and enforces the need for craftsmen to improve their production cycle to produce these fabrics in different sizes which provides the necessary UV shielding abilities for consumers in the wake of climate changes.

This study demonstrated that the natural dyeing process at the two communities produced relatively good UV and colour fastness properties of the sample fabrics. These eco-friendly dyeing practices have survived over time to maintain and promote the concept of sustainability within the textile and fashion industry in Ghana.

Safety-related issues are prominent in dyeing workplaces and studios that result in accidents. The purpose of this study is to investigate the compliance towards health safety practices by students at the dyeing studios in selected universities in Ghana.

A structured online questionnaire was developed and used to collect 285 responses from students studying at the textile and fashion department of ten universities in Ghana. The study used the partial least square (PLS) algorithm of the structural equational modelling (SEM) by bootstrapping with 5,000 samples in the SmartPLS-SEM version 4.0.

Students exhibited good attitudes with significant knowledge regarding health safety hazards at the dyeing studio. Results revealed that students’ attitudes significantly and positively affect their knowledge of health safety hazards; hence, as attitude increases, their knowledge of health safety hazards also increases. However, institutional support significantly and negatively affects the knowledge of health safety hazards by students at the dyeing studio. Subsequently, institutional support significantly and positively affects students’ attitudes towards health safety hazards at the dyeing studio; hence, as institutional support increases, their attitude towards health safety hazards also increases. In the moderation analysis, results showed that students’ attitude dampens the negative relationship between institutional support and student’s knowledge.

Work-related safety at the dyeing studios is very important to help drive for an injurious free hands-on practice with dyeing activities. Hence, the findings of this study call on institutions to provide appropriate personal protective equipments and first aid kits, effective training and supervision for workspace safety at the dyeing studios for students. This would go a long way to maintain good health safety practices during students’ dyeing activities at the studio, hence eliminating possible hazards.

The present study provides an in-depth understanding of how key variables such as institutional support influence the knowledge and attitude of students towards studio dyeing practices. Key findings from the study reiterated the importance of training workshops, state-of-the-art studios and adherence to safety by students to prevent injuries.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the value of Ghanaian weaving art tradition to humanity from socio-cultural and economic points of view. This study sought to answer questions such as “What is the interest of researchers regarding Ghanaian textile weaving art tradition?”, “To what extent has weaving art tradition projected the Ghanaian culture?” and “What is the socio-economic value of Ghanaian weaving art tradition?”

The systematic literature review approach was used to analyse data obtained from the Scopus online database. The PRISMA framework was adopted to select 22 relevant studies for analysis and conclusions. Also, the VOSviewer software was used to analyse and understand the co-occurrence of keywords.

It was revealed that Ghanaian weaving art tradition stands as a major craft that projects Ghana globally. Researchers around the world keep adding knowledge on Ghanaian traditional weaving and its value to humanity, resulting in a significant rise recently in the publication trend. Also, the rich cloth from the art is celebrated annually to invite people around the globe to learn the Ghanaian culture for social development. This study again found that traditional weaving serves as a major source of income for weavers and marketers of indigenous Ghanaian woven fabrics.

The findings of this study serve as a wake-up call to the Government of Ghana, institutional actors and national leaders to practically engage in the projection of the local art by playing individual roles such as financially supporting the craftsmen, initiating and implementing appropriate policies and displaying the local cloth on international occasions. This will make the local art more attractive for effective marketing and cultural preservation.

With reliable information extracted from the Scopus online database, this study presents original results and makes appropriate suggestions worth adopting for the improvement of the Ghanaian weaving art tradition.