The conversation opened with a familiar disruption. Technical glitches on X forced an abrupt restart, requiring fresh coordination and link-sharing. A scenario reminiscent of the ever-present “Can you hear me now?” that marks virtual gatherings across the continent.
This unplanned reset proved symbolic. African creatives recognize this pattern: unstable infrastructure necessitates constant restarts and perpetual catch-up. Yet this resilience, forged from necessity, would set the tone for an evening that would challenge the design community. With a mission to move beyond reactive survival, and towards proactive transformation.
The voices shaping the conversation
The panel brought together seasoned leaders who've navigated both local challenges and global opportunities:
Tunji Ogunoye, Director of Design at FourthCanvas, with over a decade working with giants like Nike and Apple.
Bolanle Banwo, Founder of Geneza Brands and Geneza Training, building design education from the ground up.
Simon Charwey, Founder of African Design Matters, a Yale-trained type designer and cross-continental African design advocate.
Seyi Olusanya, Co-Founder of Dá Design Studio & Afrotype, pioneering African typography on global stages.
Victor Fatanmi, Director of Stategy at FourthCanvas, leading voice in design and creative entrepreneurship.
Each brought a different lens: product, brand, education, typography. Yet their insights converged on a shared challenge: How do we move from being recognized as individuals to establishing African design as a distinct, respected discipline?
Recognition vs. representation: The current landscape
"You can name any global tech company and you'll find at least one African designer on the team," Tunji observed. We are now getting recognition. From Nigerian typefaces featured in Google Fonts to Dá Design Studio's collaboration with Pentagram, African work is increasingly visible on global stages.
But there's a crucial distinction at play. "African designers are getting recognized globally," Tunji noted, "but African design as a distinct entity? That's different."
This gap between individual success and cultural recognition struck at the heart of the evening's central tension. Seyi Olusanya emphasized the interpretation risk: "There are global powers that dictate what the world classifies as what. There is African design from the western lens, and there's African design by Africans."
The question becomes urgent: Who gets to define what African design is? And how do we ensure that definition comes from African perspectives rather than external interpretations?
The twin bottlenecks: Infrastructure and access
While celebrating progress, the panel didn't shy away from harsh realities. Bolanle painted a familiar picture: "You would see someone hire a designer, and the next thing, you know, there's no electricity. You want to join calls, and then there's the internet problem. It starts to make you look very incompetent."
These aren't just technical inconveniences, they're reputation killers. "As brand designers, the first thing is to brand ourselves, control the narrative," Bolanle explained. When basic infrastructure fails, that control evaporates.
Immigration adds another layer of frustration. Simon and Seyi described winning speaking opportunities at international conferences, only to watch visa processing times eliminate the chance entirely. "The worst thing that can happen to a person is losing an opportunity just because the immigration is terrible," Bolanle reflected.
Yet there's something powerful in this struggle. "There's something about growing up in Nigeria," Bolanle mused. "It just makes you very tough, and it just pushes you." This resilience, forged from constant adaptation, may be African design's secret weapon.
Beyond survival: Building our own systems
Simon Charwey offered the evening's most provocative challenge, drawing on Dr. Amos Wilson's questions: "What kind of people must we become in order to solve the problems that we must solve as a people? What kind of institutions must we develop so that we can act in terms of our interest?"
His vision was expansive: "We should be able to organize our own design conferences, have our own type design conferences, our own design awards and design scholarships. We should have our own design policies that benefit our government."
This is beyond mere aspiration. It’s a challenge we must take up. Charwey's work with African Design Matters demonstrates how individual initiative can build collective infrastructure. Instead of waiting for external validation, he created platforms and resources, proving that systemic change starts with personal action.
The conversation also touched on African design promoting its brightest stars and raising the baseline for all designers. Charwey's insights suggested both are vital as fostering individual excellence while building the supportive ecosystem raises overall standards.
The documentation imperative
"Language models feed on data," Seyi reminded the group. If African case studies, design philosophies, and visual histories aren't documented online, they'll be absent from AI training and future design discourse.
The solution requires collective action:
- Publish process documentation, not just portfolios
- Use local keywords and cultural references in project descriptions
- Contribute to emerging archives like African Design Matters
- When featured globally, embed context by explaining why the work is distinctly African
The path forward: Agency over adversity
Simon Charwey's closing insight captured the evening's spirit: "There is a role we have to play than just crying." The future of African design isn't something to wait for—it's something to actively create.
This means moving beyond reacting to systemic challenges toward proactively building solutions. It means recognizing that while infrastructure and immigration remain obstacles, they don't have to be excuses for inaction.
Most importantly, it means understanding that African design's global future depends not on external validation, but on internal definition. This refers to Africans saying clearly who we are, what we value, and how we see the world through design.
Keep sharing the link
As I said when the space crashed: "Let's just share the link again."
These simple acts of restarting, re-inviting, persisting all embody the spirit needed for African design's next chapter. The infrastructure will improve, the visa processes will streamline, and the global recognition will grow. But the work of defining, building, and advancing African design on our own terms? That starts now.
The room is growing. The conversation is just beginning.
The complete findings and actionable recommendations from this dialogue have been compiled into a comprehensive paper, available for reference and implementation.
