“Creation Botswana” is designed to provide structured investments in the fashion sector by offering critical support to designers and stakeholders across the fashion value chain while the Mobility Fund ensures that artists don’t fail to travel and don’t miss potentially fruitful opportunities. Staff Writer GOSEGO MOTSUMI reports
In a groundbreaking move for Botswana’s fashion industry, the National Arts Council of Botswana (NACB) announced the imminent launch of a first-of-a-kind fund called “Creation Botswana.”
The fund is specially curated to provide structured investments in the fashion sector, offering critical support to designers and stakeholders across the fashion value chain.
The announcement was made by the CEO of NACB, Shombie Ellis, during the Batho Fashion Week Fashion Dialogues that took place at the headquarters of Botswana Investment and Trade Centre (BITC) in Gaborone recently.
“This is the first time we are introducing such a specialised fund for the fashion industry,” she said. “Through ‘Creation Botswana,’ we are going to incubate fashion designers and other key players in the industry’s value chain.”
40 incubators
Ellis stated that the initiative will begin with 40 incubators who will ultimately be narrowing down to 12 eventually. Creation Botswana is designed to directly address many of the challenges of the country’s fashion industry.
“We’ve been conducting roadshows and engaging with industry leaders to ensure that we structure this project in a way that truly serves the needs of the fashion community,” said Ellis. “Please take advantage of this fund.”
Explaining the fund further, Ellis said that the fund is a part of a broader strategy to foster sustainability within the fashion industry.
“We’re not only looking to fund the creation of beautiful garments; we are investing in the future of the fashion industry and empowering designers to thrive in a sustainable market,” she noted.
To elevate quality
By supporting designers through incubation and other strategic interventions, the fund aims to elevate the quality and reach of local brands within Botswana and abroad.
“Sustainability, to us, also means ensuring access to markets,” said Ellis. “Without markets, production is pointless.”
Ellis acknowledged that while the NACB appears to have ample funding, much of it is the result of resource mobilisation. She noted that the NACOB’s approach to sustainability is to ensure that Botswana’s creatives have access to both local and international markets.
Fashion as a business
“We’re talking about economies of scale. We can’t only focus on creating if there’s no market for these creations,” she said, reinforcing the idea that fashion must be treated as a business and not just an artistic endeavour.
In addition, Ellis highlighted NACB’s “Mobility Fund” for covering artists’ travel costs to engagements and other opportunities that they would otherwise miss due to financial constraints.
“We realised that a lack of funds was limiting our creatives from accessing valuable opportunities, and the Mobility Fund is our response to that,” Ellis stated.
Commercialisation
She emphasised the importance of commercialisation of Botswana’s creative industry. “This year, we’re bringing in a resource person to look specifically at commercialisation across the sector,” Ellis said. “It is time we focused on the business side of what we do.”
Her message was clear: passion alone will not sustain Botswana’s fashion industry. For the sector to thrive, it must operate like a business invested in its long-term commercial success and sustainability.