Name: In Goma, Kivu Fashion Week celebrates solidarity, hope and resilience
Uploaded: 2025-12-27T17:02:24.686Z
Duration: 2 min 19 s
Description: Designers from eastern Congo, Rwanda and Uganda among other countries gathered in Goma this weekend for the fourth edition of Kivu Fashion Week.

Designers from eastern Congo, Rwanda and Uganda among other countries gathered in Goma this weekend for the fourth edition of Kivu Fashion Week.

Goma

Kivu Fashion Week held its fourth edition at the Serena Hotel in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, showcasing a variety of clothing styles and bringing together designers, models, and guests from neighboring countries. The event, founded in 2022, aims to foster unity, hope, and resilience in a region long affected by conflict.

Despite the ongoing violence in Eastern Congo, including recent clashes and displacement, organizers used the fashion week to promote a positive image and encourage peaceful coexistence. The event also highlighted the creative talents of the region while acknowledging the challenges faced by local communities.

In Goma, Kivu Fashion Week celebrates solidarity, hope and resilience

Models, designers and fashion enthusiasts gathered in Goma's prestigious Serena Hotel this weekend for the fourth edition of Kivu Fashion Week. The runway featured diverse pieces of clothing, from formal evening gowns to modern twists on traditional garments. Founded in 2022, the event has become a landmark celebration of style and culture in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. This year, the show promoted solidarity, hope and resilience in a region scarred by violence. The aim of this fourth edition was to bring together communities, different communities, especially in the East. This is why we invited several guests from the East and from Rwanda, Uganda and so many other countries. We just wanted to share the message that we want peace, we wanted this peaceful and international cohabitation. The conflict has plagued mineral-rich Eastern Congo for decades. In January, the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels took control of Goma, the capital of the North Kivu province. But for participants to Kivu Fashion Week, continuing the show in the city is a way to keep populations united in the face of war. So this is done in the spirit of reuniting all these peoples here who have long been scarred by the war. We wanted to bring them together in resilience, in hope and in solidarity. Kivu Fashion Week is also a space for joy and celebration. The event hopes to promote a positive vision of a region rich in creative talents. I think it's another way to denounce and to show that what is happening in our country is not just negative. Because beyond the war, we live, we create, we are resilient and we try to move forward as best as we can. But beyond the glitter and glamour of Kivu Fashion Week, violence is still raging in Eastern Congo, despite diplomatic efforts. The Congolese and Rwandan president signed a peace agreement in Washington earlier this month. Hundreds of civilians have been killed in South Kivu since the deal was signed, and thousands of people have fled to nearby Burundi.

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