The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Glitz Africa Magazine, Mrs Claudia Lumor, has expressed her disappointment at political parties’ disregard for the fashion industry, in particular, and the creative industry in general, despite their huge economic potential.

According to her, the fashion industry was a thriving business in Africa, saying that particularly for Ghana, it was the number one on the list of many foreign outlets, yet the least considered in the creative sector

“Fashion is a trillion-dollar business in Africa, and when it comes to clothing, Ghana is in the lead in Africa. Ghana is number one on the list of many foreign fashion outlets but, unfortunately, it is the least considered in the creative sector,” she said.

Mrs Lumor expressed the sentiment at the maiden Graphic Showbiz Forum on the Creative Industry, an event organised at TV3’s Executive Theatre last Monday evening.

The Forum

‘Creative industry deserves more attention’

Date: Nov – 26 – 2020 , 06:30BY: Daily GraphicCategory: Showbiz News Mrs Claudia Lumor

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Glitz Africa Magazine, Mrs Claudia Lumor, has expressed her disappointment at political parties’ disregard for the fashion industry, in particular, and the creative industry in general, despite their huge economic potential.

According to her, the fashion industry was a thriving business in Africa, saying that particularly for Ghana, it was the number one on the list of many foreign outlets, yet the least considered in the creative sectorhttps://googleads.g.doubleclick.net/pagead/ads?guci=2.2.0.0.2.2.0.0&client=ca-pub-1220784161199635&output=html&h=280&slotname=7046753112&adk=4102692488&adf=1391703869&pi=t.ma~as.7046753112&w=711&fwrn=4&fwrnh=100&lmt=1606393208&rafmt=1&psa=1&format=711×280&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.graphic.com.gh%2Fentertainment%2Fshowbiz-news%2Fghana-news-creative-industry-deserves-more-attention.html&flash=0&fwr=0&rpe=1&resp_fmts=3&wgl=1&tt_state=W3siaXNzdWVyT3JpZ2luIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9hZHNlcnZpY2UuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbSIsInN0YXRlIjowfSx7Imlzc3Vlck9yaWdpbiI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXR0ZXN0YXRpb24uYW5kcm9pZC5jb20iLCJzdGF0ZSI6MH1d&dt=1606393207387&bpp=15&bdt=8382&idt=58&shv=r20201112&cbv=r20190131&ptt=9&saldr=aa&abxe=1&cookie=ID%3D6deecf38c0aa8cce-2277ecbf6ba600cb%3AT%3D1605262480%3ART%3D1605262480%3AS%3DALNI_MYv7kNdhzsI70PyGKYLhTSnWBZTYw&correlator=466827823587&frm=20&pv=2&ga_vid=32444811.1605262477&ga_sid=1606393208&ga_hid=1507489585&ga_fc=0&icsg=550829502094&dssz=37&mdo=0&mso=0&u_tz=0&u_his=4&u_java=0&u_h=768&u_w=1360&u_ah=768&u_aw=1360&u_cd=24&u_nplug=0&u_nmime=0&adx=125&ady=1449&biw=1343&bih=693&scr_x=0&scr_y=0&eid=42530671&oid=3&pvsid=1181148553013360&pem=769&ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.graphic.com.gh%2Fentertainment.html&rx=0&eae=0&fc=896&brdim=-8%2C-8%2C-8%2C-8%2C1360%2C0%2C1376%2C784%2C1360%2C693&vis=1&rsz=%7Co%7CpoeEbr%7C&abl=NS&pfx=0&fu=8320&bc=31&ifi=1&uci=a!1&btvi=1&fsb=1&xpc=2tgTtOAu90&p=https%3A//www.graphic.com.gh&dtd=1107

“Fashion is a trillion-dollar business in Africa, and when it comes to clothing, Ghana is in the lead in Africa. Ghana is number one on the list of many foreign fashion outlets but, unfortunately, it is the least considered in the creative sector,” she said.

Mrs Lumor expressed the sentiment at the maiden Graphic Showbiz Forum on the Creative Industry, an event organised at TV3’s Executive Theatre last Monday evening.

The Forum

The forum, held in partnership with Media General and Cheezy Pizza, brought together stakeholders in the creative industry to discuss political parties’ manifestos on the industry.

Moderated by Francis Doku, the forum, held on the theme: “Moving from promises to actions: A discussion of party manifestos on the creative industry”, featured various speakers who represented the various aspects of the industry.

They included Mr Oswald Okaitei (poetry and the spoken word), George Bosompim (film), Kojo Bentum-Williams (tourism), Edem (music) and Abeiku Sagoe (theatre).

There were also contributions from notable personalities such as the Chairman of the National Film Authority, Mr David Dontoh; highlife artistes Rex Omar, Amandzeba and Akosua Adjepong, as well as a former President of MUSIGA, Mrs Diana Hopeson, and the popular poet, Nana Asaase

Million-dollar industry

Mrs Lumor, who was the main speaker, said although statistics available at the World Bank and the African Development Bank indicated that fashion was the second largest sector in Africa, apart from agriculture, very little attention was given to the sector in both past and current manifestos of the parties.

“Given its potential to create wealth, the fashion industry cannot be ignored when we talk about the creative industry. We need to be called to the table to be part of the decision making,” she stressed

Panellists

All the speakers said it was not enough for political parties to include a paragraph or two on the creative and tourism industries in their manifestos, as those policies barely mirrored the overwhelming and existing challenges of the sector.

They said previously, there was hardly any mention or recognition for the industry in the manifestos, adding that although the situation had changed, “that has not yielded much progress for the industry”.

Source: Graphic Showbiz