Africa's Creative Economy: A New Frontier for Investment and Cultural Influence

“A dandy is somebody, especially a man - it can be a woman - who takes real care about how they present themselves. It’s about self-expression, and it dates back to the 18th century when slaves were expected to dress as their masters wanted them to. But they, being so creative, took that and used it as a form of self-expression and resistance.”

Drawing the historical connection between fashion and activism, she continued: “If you think of Martin Luther King talking about freedom in America, Nelson Mandela talking about freedom in South Africa. It was a political statement. And I mean, dress was a political statement. It’s a form of self-expression. It’s a cultural moment.”

Dr. Moloi-Motsepe emphasised the importance of commercialising creativity on the continent and outlined how Africa Fashion International has worked to bridge the gap between talent and markets.

Despite the challenges, such as infrastructure limitations and lack of access to capital, Dr. Moloi-Motsepe sees these hurdles as investment opportunities.

“There are huge challenges for African designers, including issues of infrastructure, issues of funding. But these are also opportunities for investors looking to invest in the creative economy.”

She positioned Africa as a critical growth market for the global fashion industry. “The fashion industry is a $2.5 trillion industry globally, and its growth is going to come from Africa because of their creativity, the cultural diversity, and the youth market that will be there to support it.”

Touching on sustainability, Dr. Moloi-Motsepe highlighted the continent's inherent alignment with luxury and eco-conscious production.

“African people have always made their own clothes, tailoring, taking time, investing in beadwork. It’s such a very intricate process that it is luxury to actually have something that is handmade for you, for yourself, personally.”

She also addressed the issue of second-hand clothing imports and reframed it as a circular economy opportunity.

“The sad thing is that over the years, Africa has been the recipient of second-hand products… It’s an opportunity for us to turn this around and lead in recycling, circular economy.”

Technology and e-commerce, she added, are key enablers for African designers seeking scale and sustainability.

“The biggest challenge is how fragmented the industry is. It’s a lot of small startups, no scale. The fragmentation is a problem, and that’s where we come in; to help investors come into an ecosystem where we have created a platform of very highly curated designers that we know can make it.”

She noted further opportunities in tech-enabled retail, AI, and logistics. “The opportunities are in infrastructure, in tech, as well as in funding startups that just require to scale up and enter global markets.”

Dr. Moloi-Motsepe also highlighted the importance of equitable compensation and partnerships with global e-commerce platforms.

“Fair labour practices are very important to us. For small startups, it is fair that they get a fair share of profits… The bigger players, the partnerships, the collaborations that we’re seeing happening now; that’s why I mean items like what you're wearing now, my jacket, are accessible to anybody, anywhere in the world, through e-commerce.”

Finally, she introduced the concept of AFI’s FAME: Fashion, Art, Music, and Entertainment, as a holistic approach to elevating the African creative sector and building cultural capital across industries.

“We play across these four areas through my company, Africa Fashion International, but also working with my family foundation, which supports sports across the continent.”

The session concluded with a renewed call to action for investors, policymakers, and creative industry stakeholders to recognise Africa's creative economy not only as a cultural force but also as a commercially viable and globally relevant sector.