Two Sudanese Designers Named FTA Prize 2022 Finalists

Sudanese designers Yousra Elsadig and Eilaf Osman were named as two of 24 finalists for the Fashion Trust Arabia (FTA) Prize. 

Yousra Elsadig is a Sudanese-British award-winning modest fashion designer and founder of Boutique De Nana (BDN), which is a multi-award-winning fashion brand that specialises in unique and trendy modest clothing. boutiquedenana.co.uk

Sudanese-American designer Eilaf Osman is the founder of EILAF, a luxury handbag and accessories brand, specialises in designing Sudanese leather bags that combines high quality craftsmanship, minimalist silhouettes, and East African techniques to bring thoughtful products to the world. eilaf.co

According to FTA, more than 1,000 applications came through FTA’s website this year. Applications are open to designers in womenswear categories: Eveningwear, Ready-to-Wear (RTW), Accessories (Shoes/Bags), Jewelry (Fine Jewelry/Fashion Jewelry), Debut Talent (MENA Fashion Design Graduates and Students 2020-2022), and Guest Country.

According to FTA:

‘The 24 selected artists have embraced fashion as a cause, they’re here, not only to produce beautiful pieces and sell them, but also to help people, to preserve their heritage, and to be faithful to their roots. They are in tune with their time, concerned about sustainability, ethics and inclusivity; they want to bring cultures together, to defy the norms, be bigger than life, change mentalities and allow everyone in the MENA region to be themselves.’

‘And, most of all, they want to empower women, to help every woman be unique and sublime, this year more than any other. We say this year more than ever, because something has made us very proud and happy: 80% of the FTA Prize finalists in 2022 are women, when last year they made up only 50%. As symbolic as this number is, it means a lot in a region and an industry still dominated by men.’

The full list of finalists are:

• Ready-to-Wear: Renawa Yassine (Lebanon), Rym Beydoun (Super Yaya), Siham and Sarah Albinali (Saudi Arabia), Youssra Elsadig (Sudan)
• Eveningwear: Amna Salem (Kuwait), Artsi Ifrah (Morocco), Moulham Obid (Syria), Yasmin Mansour (Qatar)
• Jewelry: Alexandra Hakim (Lebanon), Dalila Barkache (Morocco), Fatma Mostafa (Egypt), Youssra Nichane (Morocco)
• Accessories: Duha Bukadi (Tunisia), Eilaf Osman (Sudan), Karen Gaballa (Egypt), Leila Roukni (Morocco)
• Franca Sozzani Debut Talent: Claudia Khachan (Lebanon), Kazna Asker (Yemen)
• This year’s FTA has invited Turkey to take part in the event for the Guest Country category. A shortlist of Turkish designers – Şansım Adalı, Burç Akyol, CeylinTürkan Bilge and Bünyamin Aydın – has been created in a mission to support global talents and build an international network of designers.

FTA is an annual non-profit organisation that aims to provide financial support and business support as well as international recognition to the dynamic fashion designers in the MENA region. FTA launched in September 2018 under the patronage of HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser as honourary chair and co-chairs HE Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad Al Thani and Tania Fares. FTA is the only initiative of its kind operating in the Arab world, dedicated to finding and nurturing talented designers.

The 24 finalists will present their work to the FTA jury in Doha, Qatar on 26 October 2022. The six winners will be announced during the evening’s FTA 2022 Awards ceremony.