The Network is as a result from a workshop held in the UK in 1999. Thereafter, the Institute for Development Studies, University of Nairobi invited academics from Tanzania, Ethiopia and South Africa to form the Network. The Network was launched in Nairobi in September 2001. Since then, its membership has grown to six countries as follows: Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, Mauritius and, Madagascar.
Aim
To conduct research on Clothing and Footwear Sectors in these countries.
The African Clothing and Footwear Research Network grew out of an international conference held in 1999 at the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex, UK (IDS-Sussex). The conference, under the theme of ‘Spreading the Gains from Globalisation’, brought together approximately 40 participants from the academic, corporate, policy and foundation communities to try to meet the challenge of defining a more robust intellectual paradigm and effective policy agenda to facilitate spreading the gains from globalisation.
Prof. Dorothy McCormick will be attending the "Origin Africa" event in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 24th - 27th April, 2012. She will also be making a presentation on "Adjusting to Chinese Ascendancy in the Post-MFA Global Clothing Industry: Innovation, Technology, and Markets of African Exporters". This event is organised by African Cotton & Textiles Industries Federation (ACTIF), with other partners such as USAID COMPETE, Ethiopia Garment Manufacrturers Association (ETGAMA), Trade and Fairs East Africa and Hub of Africa Fashion Week.
The event highlights the creativity and innovation of the African cotton, textile and clothing industries and raises the profile of the continenet as a source of supply of cotton, textile products, fabrics, clothing, home decor and fashion accessories. This world class event will bring together business leaders and decision makers from across Africa, providing opportunities for international buyers to establish contacts with African designers and industry and to do business. There will be a trade expo of over 60 exhibitors from Africa, Asia and Europe to promote trade opportunities from fiber to fabric, from corporate wear to fashion, and from clothing manufacturers to accessories. International buyers from US and Europe in textiles, apparel and home decor will be attending. International business and innovation seminar series will also be conducted and this is where Prof. McCormick will be making her presentation.
The Kenyan research team on " Adjusting to Chinese Ascendancy" project held a paper-writing workshop in Naivasha on 12th -15th February, 2012. The retreat was very successful as it saw the drafting of five papers from the five researchers constituting the Kenyan team. These papers are based on five different themes emanating from the research carried out under this project. Prof. McCormick, the International Coordinator for this project is doing a cross-country analysis of all the themes addressed in this research. Dr. Kamau, the Kenya coordinator is writting on issues of labour availability and technical skills in the Kenyan garment industry while Dr. Michuki is looking at the overall Industrial policy in Kenya and how it affects the garment sector's competitiveness. Ms. Gatimu is looking at Innovation in the same industry while Dr. Abala is doing an analysis of trade data on exports ( Clothing and apparel) from all ACFRN countries. The team is also expeted to produce journal articles from the same research. This is part of the dissemination of research outcomes.
ACFRN countries held their dissemination workshops successfully. The aim of these workshops was to disseminate the findings of the on-going study on Adjusting to Chinese Ascendancy in the Post-MFA Global Clothing Industry in all countries under study. The stakeholders invited for these workshops included government representatives(Ministries of Trade and Industrialization), firms interviewed, Research Institutes, ACTIF representatives and other bodies interested in the SSA Clothing and Textiles Industries. The discussions that emanated from the presentations were rich and have continued to shape the papers and journal articles that are coming out of this research.
Dr. Paul Kamau and Ms. Carolyne Gatimu attended an International Conference for East African Cotton, Textile and Apparel (CTA) Value Chain to Develop Competitiveness from 1st to 4th November, 2011 at North Coast Beach Hotel, Mombasa, Kenya. The overall theme of the conference was to address the issues impacting the competitiveness of the cotton, textile and apparel value chain in Eastern Africa and exploring opportunities for trade, capacity building and investment. The conference brought together representatives of the entire CTA value Chain, including cotton farmers associations, ginners, spinners, textile companies, garment manufacturers, fashion designers, students and scholars, government institutions, international development bodies, national and international subject matter experts among others. The outcomes of the conference included: a better understanding of where East Africa's CTA sector is failing to meet global standards, development of linkages for promoting trade and investment in CTA sectors in East Africa, and identification of specific opportunities to build the capacity of East African training and educational institutions and evaluate potential partnerships with international institutions among others.
- In 2010, IDS was awarded a two-year grant by IDRC to fund research into ‘Adjusting to Chinese Ascendency in the Global Clothing Industry: Dimensions, Variations, Sources and Limits of Post-MFA Stabilisation in African Clothing Exports’. The research covers seven countries: Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Swaziland, Mauritius, and Madagascar. See IDRC.
