Burkina Faso fashion designers: more for the nation than for the conflict | World News

By SAM MEDNICK Associated Press

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AP) — Vibrant African clothing, both traditional and contemporary, graced the catwalk at Burkina Faso fashion week.

The designers say they are striving to make the West African country known as an emerging fashion hub, to offset its reputation for its recent coup and ongoing conflict with Islamic extremists. Some of the shows took place on a central street in Ouagadougou, the capital, where residents lined up to see models strutting their stuff in designs for women and men.

The tiny West African nation is hosting its third Ouaga Fashion Week, the first since the pandemic forced it to be delayed. The colorful four-day extravaganza closed on Sunday amid escalating jihadist violence linked to al Qaeda and the Islamic State group that has killed thousands.

When the capital was hit by frequent power outages, models and designers used the lights from their cell phones to do their makeup and do their hair.

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Some 35 designers, chosen from some 200 applicants, from West Africa and Europe, exhibited their garments in the capital, Ouagadougou. For the first time, most of the designers, about 75%, were from Burkina Faso, said Alex Zabsonre, director of the event.

“Burkina is one of the African countries that has a lot of potential to offer when it comes to fashion… That’s why I set up this project, to expose Burkina Faso designers and get them recognized globally. international”. he said.

Many of the designs featured Burkina Faso’s traditional hand-woven Faso Dan Fani fabric made from cotton, which Zabsonre says has been worn by celebrities such as singer Beyonce and fashion designer Stella McCartney. The country is one of the world’s top 10 cotton exporters, accounting for an average of 3% of world exports since 2000, according to the UN.

Fashion in the country has evolved in recent years, so people have become more clothing conscious, said Korotimi Dao, fashion designer and founder of Koro DK Style.

“Fashion week is not a challenge, it is an opportunity to hope that everything will be fine again,” he said.

Since 2017, the European Union has donated $10 million to the Ethical Fashion Project, which has created hundreds of jobs for marginalized women and helps professionalize the textile and creative industry by connecting Burkina Faso producers and designers with distinguished designers. of fashion and interiors, Wolfram Vetter, the ambassador to the European Union in Burkina Faso told The Associated Press.

“It is time for these unrecognized artisans to play a role on the global fashion stage so that these crafts, traditions and cultures are kept alive,” said Mallika Chaudhuri, founder and director of INDOI, a womenswear brand based in India. in Great Britain. “We need to celebrate, revive and sustain local craft where designers and creators work together to move towards a more ethical and sustainable fashion industry.”

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