Friday, July 31st marked the launch of the first "traditional Friday" in the civil service. Some state employees complied with the new dress code. Several civil servants proudly wore traditional outfits to their offices on Friday, following a decree adopted by the Council of Ministers on July 17th. Men wore a malabary, shirt and soga fabric trousers, a straw hat, and a lamba; some simply draped a lamba over their suit. Women wore a lambahoany, a dress in soga or wild silk fabric, paired with a hat and/or silk lamba. "It's a bit strange wearing this outfit. People look at you with curiosity. It will surely take time for everyone to get used to it," said Hery Rakotomanana, a civil servant who wore a malabary, lamba and hat last Friday. The outfit represented a significant investment for this employee. "My malabary cost 35,000 ariary, the lamba 55,000 ariary and the hat 15,000 ariary," he added. Traditional attire represents a major expense for many civil servants. Haro Ramiandrisoa had not budgeted for this expense. Accustomed to buying work clothes cheaply at secondhand shops, she sees this measure as a financial burden. "A simple soga dress costs at least 60,000 ariary, a shirt 50,000 ariary and a men's outfit 75,000 ariary. My husband and I are both civil servants, and this unexpected expense weighs heavily on our monthly budget. Plus, we need to buy several outfits, as we won't wear the same ones every Friday," she explained. Neither she nor her husband yet owns traditional attire. Like this couple, many employees did not wear traditional clothing on Friday. "Since there are no clear guidelines yet on wearing traditional attire in our department, I didn't wear any," said another civil servant. She plans to have her outfits custom-made by her tailor. Among traditional clothing vendors, sales are still struggling to take off. "The obligation to wear traditional attire hasn't yet benefited us. Customers remain very rare and we cannot know if the few buyers are civil servants or just private individuals," said Dina Randriamihaja, founder of Fitafy Gasy, a company specializing in traditional attire. The July 17th decree establishes the wearing of traditional attire every Friday. "Whether traditional or modernized, this clothing must reflect cultural heritage and the diversity of Madagascar's regions."