Kenyan designer Wanja Ngare on Wednesday, June 7, flaunted her elegant designs during a meeting with Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba in Nairobi.
Ngare designs, which graced the 2020 Olympics at Japan's National Stadium, were mostly made from Maasai shukas and blended with Kenyan flag colours. They were worn by Team Kenya athletes, a crop of runners synonymous with dominating the global championship.
The designer revealed that she was inspired to make the unique creations in a bid to 'establish a perfect mix of Kenyanacity, with a touch and richness of culture.'
"Adidas creates uniforms for team Great Britain, made by local UK designers. In the same way, we can find a workable solution where local designers can be co-opted in such partnerships to help in designing our official sportswear," Wanja noted.
The fashion designer noted that her stylish high-quality sportswear had been of great value to Kenyan teams participating in local, commonwealth and Olympic events.
She is known for making sports apparel using in-house designed textiles inspired by the Maasai culture, heritage, and tradition.
The fashion designer boasts of a clientele comprising record-breaking athletes who she credits for taking her fashion to the world.
Kenya Rugby 7s team was among her major partners that elevated her brand by shining in various international competitions.
Government Support
In line with the Bottom-up Economic Transformation Agenda, Sports CS assured Wanja of his ministry's support for such local talents to elevate their hustles
"Our artists are the goose that lay the golden egg, and therefore, we must treat them better and put in place measures that will ensure they are rewarded better," he stated.
Namwamba added that sportsmen and women are Kenya’s number one branding assets and the country owes them so much for the value they've brought to the nation.
At the same time, the CS indicated that artists are key component of the culture and deserved to be rewarded fairly for their artistic creations.
