Among the basic needs of the human being, there is the safety of the body. It's not just about having a roof to sleep, a good job, or being in good health. You must also be able to dress, whether properly or not.

From the moment we are born and until we die, we wear clothes. To help better understand the magnitude of the situation, let's take the case of people who can be dressed almost 24 hours a day. The only time they undress is for bathing, or changing clothes. In addition, a naked adult in the street would be immediately treated as crazy. This is to say the importance of clothing in our life.

But despite the fact that we dress every day, just a few people plan a budget for this need. Generally, we don’t put money aside every month to renew our wardrobe. When we go shopping in town and find a piece of clothing that we like, we just buy it if we have enough money on us. This is how it works!

Of course, this way of doing things is not due to chance. Dressing is expensive! And even more when you want to dress properly. This is why in African capitals (Lagos, Abidjan, Cotonou, Addis Ababa, Nairobi, etc.), the best-dressed people are considered as coming from a certain social class. This situation has also led to the fashion clothes called "venue de France" in some French-speaking countries, or second choice clothes. Those clothes sometimes cost ten times cheaper than new clothes. They then have more success with the popular class.

Saying that the high price of new clothes is the fault of the designer would be pure slander. We must go back further, to the process of cotton processing, or even beyond, to better understand the extent of the problem.

Why are clothes so expensive?

Africa is not the only continent facing this problem of the high price of new clothes. In Europe or United States, some new t-shirts cost up to € 200. Converted into West African francs, this would amount to about 130 814,55 FCFA.

Despite the strong growth experienced in some African countries, the average monthly income per inhabitant is not extraordinary. So to be able to afford a simple T-shirt for that price, you would have to work for a whole month, even two or three months. For a citizen who earns only the minimum wage, it is inconceivable. And we don’t even talk about "ready-to-wear".

Only a few African designers offer ready-to-wear under 10,000 FCFA. A large part of the population is therefore excluded from their clientele. This king of clothes isn’t made for them, except for those who want to show off on a special occasion. But stylists are not primarily responsible for the high cost of "ready-to-wear" clothing. To have quality materials, it's a real obstacle course. For example, they have sometimes to spend hours looking for a textile they used a month ago to make a garment. For Isabelle Andoh-Vieira of YSAND, it is a shame that Africa has cotton and at the same time textile problems.

Cotton processing: this may be the real cause... Being able to transform our cotton into good quality finished products is a real challenge that Africa must take up. This could help the continent reach its full potential in the fashion sector.

Africa must transform its cotton to develop its fashion market

According to the stylist-model designer Pathé'O, "Africa can dress Africa. But to do that, she needs her cotton". Only a few years ago, the cotton-textile sector was turning at two speeds in West Africa.

To date, not everything is perfect, but nevertheless, efforts are being made on the part of decision makers who are increasingly aware of the potential of the sector.

The textile and fashion industry offers great opportunities for the future. But for these prospects to become a reality, certain conditions must absolutely be met. In Africa, the fashion industry could generate US$ 15,5 million in five years, according to the AfDB - and these figures are still far from the US $ 1.3 billion that this industry weighs globally. It is important for Africa to be enough competitive to position itself at the front of the stage in order not to miss this opportunity, which for sure will help to develop the continent and well-being of his inhabitants.