Europe's largest fashion event aimed at promoting African design talent from the diaspora, Africa Fashion Week London is a social enterprise and annual fashion event established to introduce a UK audience to African designers and dispel misguided narratives that have long informed the West’s view of fashion from the continent. Founded in 2011 by Ronke Ademiluyi, AFWL is focused on encouraging trade for African designers within the global community and helps to nurture them on a global scale.

Founded in 2007 by Precious Moloi-Motsepe, African Fashion International is a seasonal showcase of African fashion brands aimed at propelling them onto a global stage. The event has been instrumental in growing the careers of a number of local designers, presenting them with the opportunities to gain exposure and experience through their popular Fast Track program, while it’s AFI boutique offers the designers who show a way to connect directly with the consumer as their collections are revealed.

One of the largest annual fashion events in East Africa, Swahili Fashion Week was founded in 2008 by Tanzanian couturier Mustafa Hassanali, and is held annually in Dar es Salaam. Comprised of traditional runway shows, pop-up shops, trade shows, and new talent discovery initiatives, as well as other opportunities for knowledge building, it’s aimed at emphasizing to the region that fashion made in Africa can be a valuable income-generating creative industry.

A platform for discovering, encouraging, and promoting Mozambican fashion, Mozambique Fashion Week was founded in 2004 in Maputo, with the aim of placing the country on the radar of the international fashion community. The largest fashion event in the southern African nation, runway shows are the predominant attraction. MFW has also been known to host pop-ups and live performances, as well as panel discussions in the areas of culture, art, fashion, and entrepreneurship.

Founded in 2002 by Senegalese creative entrepreneur Adama Ndiaye, Dakar Fashion Week is one of the continent’s longest-running fashion weeks, and an event that strives to highlight the best of local design and celebrate Senegalese fashion and creativity. Underpinned by an embrace of Pan-Africanism that aims to counter the global stereotypes of the continent, the event has seen designers from across the continent presenting their collections.

Held annually in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Hub of Africa Addis Fashion Week (HAFW) was established to highlight the growing pool of high caliber African designers and brands, make them visible to an international market hungry for new talent, and foster connections between the various sectors of the continent’s growing garment industry. Founded in 2010 by Linda Murithi and Mahlet Teklemariam, the event has played host to brands including Maison ARTC, Kahindo, Mataano, and ROOOI.

Established in 1995 with its globally acclaimed conference that attracts thousands of attendees from all over the world, the Design Indaba brand has evolved into a multidisciplinary platform that champions all creative sectors. Founded in 1995 by Ravi Naidoo, DI is powered by an ethos of creating a better world through creativity, and their initiatives most notably the Emerging Creatives Program, have served as a launching pad for some of South Africa’s most promising young design talent.

A trade, promotional and artistic fashion forum, Cairo Fashion Week was established in 2015 by Egyptian businessman Omar Madkour and today is considered one of the premier events on Egypt’s fashion calendar. Enabling local and regional designers and brands to present their collection to global and regional buyers, media, and the general public, CFW also offers young designers a chance to showcase their products, market themselves and attract the right audience for their burgeoning businesses.

Founded in 1996 by Lucilla Booyzen, SAFW is held seasonally in Johannesburg and Cape Town and is seen as a driving force behind the growth of the country's vibrant fashion design culture. South Africa’s only Business-to-Business fashion platform, it comprises runway shows, incubator programs, and a trade show, and in 2020 was celebrated by South Africa’s museum of contemporary art, the Zeitz Mocca, in an exhibition titled “Making Histories with South African Fashion Week. Now in its 24th year, this season’s digital event will see 28 designers show collections, including the finalists of the New Talent Search 2021 Competition.