One day, Fatuma Abdullah’s daughter came back from crèche and asked for her hair to be straightened.
Her daughter’s wish to have her hair straightened made her realise how kids are aware of their surroundings. She didn’t take her daughter’s revelation lightly and felt the need to contribute to creating a positive African self-image. Akiki is a Swahili name for a ruby, a precious stone she says is associated with nobility, high energy, courage and confidence. In her creation, Fatuma didn’t just want to create a doll, she wanted to raise self-awareness and self-love amongst the black community and let children know that it’s okay to be black.
“The readily available toys and books are very Eurocentric and not representative of us. I don’t want my children to grow up thinking that they are less important. Akiki is a channel for our children to embrace their diversity, appreciate their differences and develop a sense of self-worth,” the entrepreneur shares.Fatuma has a project management background that helped her with the planning of the business.
She does it all, marketing, designing, illustrating and writing. The demand is not too high, so she’s currently working on her own and says she will look into hiring staff as soon as demand increases. She’s currently working with small and medium sized-enterprises that share the same values as her. “In five years, Akiki should be an established reader brand for foundation learners in schools across Africa. I believe it is important for our children to learn to read about African stories, and this starts at the foundation phase,” she says.
Parent24 Good news
Parent24 Coconuts are not black?
Parent24 Must be weak minded kids she has there.
Parent24 Love it. She saw a problem, and instead of bitching and moaning about it she got of her arse and did something about it. I salute you young lady.
Parent24 Boring. It’s been done.
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