Euromonitor International estimates that the combined garment and footwear market in sub-Saharan Africa is estimated to be worth $31 billion dollars.

CNBC Africa is joined by two women innovating in the South African design industry by using and making sustainable products in their own businesses.

Kelechi Amadi-Obi, born December 29, 1964, is a Nigerian creative photographer, painter, artist and the publisher of Mania Magazine

Lagos Street Style is a partnership of two – a mother and son duo (Fifi and Seni). Fifi is a full-time oil and gas lawyer who started documenting street style in Scotland 6 years ago and more recently in Lagos when she moved back home in 2014.

Omolara Cole is the CEO of Elan Red Store. Elan Red Store is unisex store, we sell both local and international brands. I am also the creative director behind Amarelis; Amarelis is a female wear brand and we do ready to made outfits.

Bloomberg's Emma Chandra examines the negative environmental aspects of the fashion industry and steps being taken by companies to make production more sustainable. She speaks on "Bloomberg Daybreak: Americas."

Milan Fashion Week has kicked off, under the shadow of the coronavirus outbreak. Dozens of brands have warned their supply chains are at risk - and sales are slipping. Also in the show: France takes steps to close down its oldest nuclear power plant, and Airbus announces 2,300 job cuts in its defence and space unit.

More than 1,100 people were killed when the Rana Plaza textile factory collapsed in 2013. The tragedy drew attention to poor safety standards in Bangladesh's lucrative garment industry.

"The most sustainable garment is one you keep for the rest of your life." Livia Firth, co-founder and creative director of Eco-Age, says the fashion industry has been turned upside down by the #fastfashion business, but that consumers and designers can reverse the trend. "The world has been addicted to consuming, like we've been addicted to sugar. We now have to wean ourselves [off that trend] and understand that it's not necessary to constantly change our wardrobe. In the long term you actually save a lot of money," she tells FRANCE 24.

The EU exported nearly 1.7 million tons of used textiles in 2019 but experts say their fate abroad is "highly uncertain."

After the Rana Plaza factory collapse, life-saving reforms were introduced to hold international brands legally accountable for the safety of their workers. But violations still persist.