The event, which is billed to hold from December 6 to 8 at the Lagos Oriental Hotel would have different designers showcase everything African fashion on the runway.
Founder, Africa Fashion Weeks Nigeria & London, HRM Olori Aderonke Ademiluyi-Ogunwusi, made this announcement during a media briefing in Lagos, recently.
She said: “For 10 and 14 years, Africa Fashion Weeks Nigeria and London respectively have fostered the growth of African fashion creatives. We believe creativity requires supportive platforms. Since 2011, we’ve exhibited over 3,000 African brands locally and internationally. Beyond showcasing, we educate global audiences about African fashion, preserve cultural heritage in textiles through initiatives like Adire Textile Training and Production Hub.
“Our primary vision is empowering fashion creatives for financial sustainability. By fostering entrepreneurship, skills training, and job creation, we empower African fashion creatives to thrive. By 2030, Africa needs 450 million jobs for its youth, necessitating a shift from traditional curriculum to future-focused skills training.
“Today, we see significant skills transfer: lawyers becoming content creators, doctors turning into chefs. Our ultimate vision at Africa Fashion Weeks includes: Create jobs through creativity, generate wealth, alleviate poverty, educate through the creative sector, etc.
“The fashion industry’s value chain offers vast job opportunities such as design and production where you have designers, textile artists, tailors, photographers, videographers, content creators, models, makeup artists, and hair and fashion stylists. The platform also creates jobs for show producers, technical producers (lighting, sound), Disk Jockey, backstage managers, digital marketers, administrative assistants, dressers, show callers, creative directors and wardrobe managers. So platforms like Africa Fashion Weeks Nigeria and London create jobs across the fashion industry.”
When asked about the place of Nigeria textile in this era and its preservation, she said: “our textiles, especially adire, had just come back prior to the resurgence of adire. A lot of our textiles had died. In the 60s we had over 200 textile companies in Nigeria especially in the North, right now we only have about three. So, reviving, promoting and preserving our textiles is important because it also serves as an income and job generator.”
The Queen of Ile Ife also revealed that the oncoming AFWN will have CEOs, MDs, First Ladies on the carpet to inspire and encourage the designers.
Also speaking at the event, Representative of Sterling Bank, Chidinma Okoli, said Sterling bank has long championed transformative initiatives, from Agric Summit Africa to the Africa Social Impact Summit. “These platforms allow us to drive positive change, and now, with our partnership with AFWN, we are excited to amplify the creative economy’s role in Nigeria’s growth. With the fashion sector contributing billions of naira annually to Nigeria’s GDP and growing at a remarkable rate, this partnership is a natural extension of our mission to nurture economic development, job creation, and cultural innovation. Through this partnership, we are committed to making AFWN a platform for amplifying Nigerian talent, creativity, and sustainable growth.”
