The government of Zanzibar has banned men from Plaiting their hair and those caught face a fine of Sh1 million, six months imprisonment, or both.

The executive secretary of the Council of Arts, Film, and Culture in Zanzibar, Dr. Omar Adam, said that the action aims at protecting Zanzibar tradition and culture.

Police will arrest all men who plait hair in Zanzibar without a special permit and  any man who wants to have permission to plait will be required to pay Tsh1 million.

"Police will arrest all men who plait hair; this is not acceptable by the arts council, and there is a special permit for plaiting hair, which is Sh1 million, and we have set that price in order to deter them. Now it is your choice to either pay Sh1 million to plait or buy a razor to shave."

The law has been in existence since 2015 but has not been implemented. Omar, however, did not state whether it would apply to foreign visitors.