Online Reporter
Blessings Chidakwa in New York, United States
ZIMBABWE’S creative industries, including designers and fashion students, are set to access international runways, new markets and export opportunities, with benefits extending to women and young people, following engagements at the 14th Annual Official First Ladies Luncheon in New York.
The opportunities emerged following an invitation to First Lady Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa to the prestigious 14th Annual Official First Ladies Luncheon, hosted by Fashion 4 Development president and founder Ms Evie Evangelou on the sidelines of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
This was in recognition of her work supporting communities, empowering women and promoting Zimbabwean culture.
For Zimbabwe, such partnerships could create pathways for local designers and students to access international markets while helping women and young people turn fashion and handmade products into high-paying income-generating enterprises.
The initiative could also strengthen the link between fashion, culture and tourism by giving Zimbabwean designers platforms to showcase the country’s cultural identity to international audiences.
This comes as Zimbabwe continues to position its culture, fashion and creative industries as platforms for economic opportunities and international engagement.
The luncheon, which featured tributes to renowned fashion designer Oscar de la Renta and American businessman and philanthropist Robert Edward Turner III, founder of Cable News
Network, also provided a platform to showcase Zimbabwe’s culture, heritage and fashion before global personalities from fashion, philanthropy, tourism and international development.
Fashion 4 Development representative Mrs Mercedes Alagna said the organisation wanted to work with Dr Mnangagwa and the Tourism and Hospitality Ministry to create international platforms for Zimbabwean designers and fashion students.
“We would love to partner together with the First Lady and the Office of Tourism to bring possibly a fashion week to Zimbabwe or bring those fashion students to the United States, to Europe, to be able to feature them on different runways and bring more exposure to Zimbabwe fashion,” she said.
Alagna said Zimbabwe had “so many amazing fashions” that could be showcased internationally.
She said greater exposure could create opportunities for women and young people while supporting job creation and exports.
“We would love to push more for women’s empowerment and going back to different types of handmade items, producing more jobs and exporting more fashion items,” she said.
The First Lady has championed the preservation and promotion of Zimbabwean culture through initiatives including the national fabric and Doek Drive.
Her work through the Angel of Hope Foundation has also supported vulnerable communities, women and young people through various empowerment and humanitarian initiatives.
Philanthropist Ms Nicolla Hewitt said the First Lady Dr Mnangagwa’s work was contributing to community development while highlighting the role of women in environmental conservation, sustainability and economic empowerment.
Hewitt said women played an important role in supporting communities through initiatives such as environmental programmes and microfinancing.
She also commended Zimbabwe’s efforts to promote tourism, wildlife conservation and sustainability.
“I think the First Lady is doing an incredible job, and it always takes a woman to make a really big difference,” she said.
Hewitt said linking environmental conservation with tourism could create employment opportunities while promoting sustainability and giving young people hope for the future.
“It provides employment and tourism, and again, sustainability, job creation, and hope for the next generation,” she said.
Marcia L Dyson, a cultural ambassador, said Zimbabwe’s efforts to promote fashion as part of its cultural identity were important in showcasing the country’s heritage to the world.
While commending the First Lady for bringing greater attention to these cultural elements through her fashion initiatives, she said fashion should be recognised as an important form of cultural expression and wearable art.
“Fashion is the most wearable art form around the world,” she said.
L Dyson said Zimbabwe’s use of traditional motifs and fabrics helped celebrate the country’s identity while connecting its cultural heritage with the international fashion industry.
She said Africa’s fashion traditions were rooted in the continent’s natural resources, including fabrics, beads and indigenous designs, which were later transformed into runway creations.
She also commended the First Lady for bringing greater attention to these cultural elements through her fashion initiatives.
Fashionist Indira Gumarova said the First Lady’s work through the Angel of Hope Foundation had provided support to vulnerable women and disadvantaged communities.
“She created the Angel of Hope Foundation, and she supports vulnerable women, women with fertility problems, and poor women. She created the foundation for them,” she said.
The fashionist said she would be interested in supporting a Zimbabwean designer who dresses the First Lady, highlighting the potential for Zimbabwean fashion to gain greater international exposure.
Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Barbara Rwodzi said the First Lady’s invitation to the luncheon reflected growing international recognition of her work in Zimbabwe and across Africa.
“The invitation of the First Lady of the Republic of Zimbabwe, Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa, is exponentially speaking volumes about the work that she’s doing in the country,” she said.
Minister Rwodzi said the First Lady’s work was also opening doors for marginalised women while linking philanthropy with fashion and other platforms to mobilise resources.
“It’s now known internationally where other people are referring to the works that our First Lady is doing and the relationship that it has philanthropically with what she is doing,” she said.
She said the First Lady’s promotion of Zimbabwean culture through the national fabric was generating interest in the country among international audiences.
Minister Rwodzi said people at the luncheon had been asking about the fabric she wore and learning that it was Zimbabwe’s national identity and had been designed by the First Lady.
“More than 10 women have said, ‘We want to come to Zimbabwe,’ and we’ve been having conversations around that,” she said.
Minister Rwodzi said the interest demonstrated how culture and fashion could help promote Zimbabwe’s heritage while attracting visitors.
“Our dressing speaks volumes about our heritage and who we are, our identity, and that all coming from the First Lady, who is bringing back the Zimbabwean culture and introducing it to the world, hence an attraction and many people wanting to come to our country,” she said.
Minister Rwodzi said organisers had thoroughly researched Dr Mnangagwa’s work, particularly her wildlife advocacy and its impact on communities.
She said the First Lady’s role as a Wildlife Ambassador had also attracted interest from international participants who expressed willingness to work with her on promoting conservation.
“You have heard other, I think, three ladies who spoke about it and wanting to work with the First Lady in future on how she can continue with that work as an ambassador for wildlife in the country and making it have an impact to our social fabric,” she said.
Minister Rwodzi also said the First Lady’s Angel of Hope Foundation was now internationally recognised for its philanthropic work, including supporting children with cancer and economically empowering marginalised women.
As a mother and philanthropist, the First Lady has prioritised support for underserved communities through the Angel of Hope Foundation, providing humanitarian assistance while promoting dignity and creating opportunities for vulnerable groups.
Her commitment to Zimbabwe’s identity is also reflected in efforts to preserve and promote the country’s culture and heritage, including the national fabric and Doek Drive initiatives.
These efforts have helped provide platforms for Zimbabwean traditions, fashion and indigenous identity to gain wider international exposure.
