Ugandans to reap from fashion tourism

 

 

Clare Mugabi, Uganda Tourism Board (UTB), Marketing Manager noted that tourism is no longer about people coming to see wildlife.

 

"People want to experience the culture, the cuisine and the fashion. We are glad UIFW is taking a lead in fashion tourism," Mugabi said.

 

The revelations were made during the unveiling of the sixth edition of Uganda International Fashion Week (UIFW)2019 , a platform promoting fashion at Serena hotel Kampala on Monday.

 

She added that the fashion industry will promote and contribute to the promotion of tourism.

 

"There is a lot of potential in the fashion industry sector; that is the potential we want to exploit to diversify our tourism product to see to spur further development in the country," she added.

 

A number of youth are employed in the fashion industry.

 

She further added that If Uganda's different tourism products can be marketed, they can attract fashion stars to work with local talents to invent designs and fabrics that can be showcased on the international fashion hence creating employment opportunities.

 

Tourism contributes to over 10%  of the national GDP.

 

UIFW in its sixth edition is organized under the theme "The Business Behind Fashion" to magnify the potential of fashion as a vehicle for swift economic development in Africa.

 

Santa Anzo, Chief Fashion Designer, Arapapa said fashion is at the forefront of causing socio-economic change in Uganda and in Africa, by creating activations of partnerships that promote the fashion, garments and textile industry.

 

"Fashion, like petroleum and gas, communication and tourism, agriculture, transport, finance and banking is a multi-billion industry waiting to be exploited," Santa said.

 

She noted that UIFW is aimed at encouraging the adoption of fashion as a career capable of absorbing the unemployed in Africa, especially youths and women.  

 

Santosh Gumte, MD, Kansai Plascon Uganda believes that the progress of the paint and interior design industry cannot be separated from the progress of the fashion industry.

 

He said the fashion industry accounts for 2% of the world's GDP and is valued at over $700b and has the capacity to absorb the unemployed youth in the country.

 

"UIFW encourages and promotes the preservation of culture. It draws designers from around the continent and gives them the opportunity for cross-country exchange of fashion entrepreneurship ideas and concepts," he said.

 

According to African Development Bank report, the Fashion industry creates value and wealth across the continent with women and youth at the heart of this change.

 

It further indicates that the industry presents a lot of potential for value addition; estimated up to 600% that can be created along the cotton value chain: from cotton production, spinning and twisting into yarn, to weaving and knitting into fabric, followed by dying, printing and designing.

 

Koni Lungi, Kansai Plascon's Regional Manager said the fashion industry is very exciting, innovative and a space that can be tamped into to create shareholder value by embracing opportunities and managing possibilities derived from economic, environmental and social development.

 

"We want to give our full support by providing colour inspiration during UIFW 2019 through our Colour Forecast which displays an endless combination of colour stories that exhibit a mix of shades that create the feeling of freedom in both interior design and fashion platforms," Lungi said.

 

UIFW was founded in 2003. It is slated from 2th-4th August, 2019. It will feature some of Africa's finest designers including four South Africans and our home-grown talent; Fatumah Asha, Stella Atal, Abbas Kai, Paula Butagira.