Local fashionista Bianca Baby’s second red-carpet event, which took place in Kigali over the weekend, has largely been considered a success – having showcased a range of inspiring creatives. The red carpet, which attracted big names in the creative industry from around the region, was yet another opportunity to showcase the potential of Rwanda’s budding culture and creative arts space. Historically, creative arts have been associated with beauty, exposure and visual expressions, and barely considered as a potentially major contributor to economic growth. Now, culture and heritage, beyond being an expression of a people’s identity, their values and aspirations, are an integral part of the creative sector, and, if well harnessed, they could serve as an important source of employment, especially for the youth, and make a significant contribution toward the economy as well as promote the country’s heritage. According to the Africa Policy and Politics 2016 report, the creative industry fetched $4.2 billion for the continent compared to $2.25 trillion globally. And, the United Nations estimates that the creative economy accounts for nearly 50 million jobs globally. According to official statistics, Rwanda’s creative sector grew 36-fold between 1999 and 2016, from Rwf9 billion to Rwf328 billion. Nonetheless, the sector remains hugely unexploited both in Rwanda and across Africa. In Rwanda, the creative industry gained more traction when the government moved to promote locally made products through the Made-In-Rwanda initiative launched a few years ago. This has notably seen the emergence of several local players, including in the fashion space. Nonetheless, there are still a number of bottlenecks that limit the sector’s growth. These include difficulty accessing financing and capacity building to help make local players competitive on the international scene. There is a need to devise a deliberate strategy to tackle these challenges if the sector is to achieve its maximum potential.
