Caribbean fashion designs set Niger ablaze

NIAMEY, Niger (CMC) — Outfits, handbags, shoes and accessories from a number of Caribbean designers and a self-taught Nigerien designer generated a buzz at a fashion show here on Saturday night.

The show was held as part of the fifth meeting of Ministers of Culture from the 79-member African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) group of states at a time when the bloc is focusing on the potential contribution of culture to national development.

The Caribbean designs came from the French-, Spanish- and English-speaking countries and were brought together by Caribbean Fashion Showroom, which dubs itself “the home for the region’s leading designers”.

The event was organised by the Barbados-based Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) in collaboration with the Brussels-based secretariat of the ACP.

“What we have seen today is the true collaboration between Africa and the Caribbean, promoting fashion, promoting handicraft, promoting talent and culture from our countries,” Escipión J. Oliveira, deputy executive director of the Caribbean Export Development Agency, told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) after the event.

He said his agency took advantage of the opportunity of the four-day meeting, which ended on Sunday, “to present to our African brother and sisters and also Pacific brothers and sisters that we can collaborate to gain markets”.

Read more at: IWitness News

Source: CARICOM TODAY