Fashion Auction for the 2011 Children's Fiesta

There is a major new event in the African calendar. On Friday, the 27th of May in Lagos, Children will be introduced to a fun new way of learning as the ?Children?s Fiesta? is unveiled.

The event tagged ?Children?s Fiesta 2011? is an annual event kicking off this year with the theme ??Taking Tomorrow Today??, specifically designed to inspire kids as well as enhance their career development skills for the future in a subtle and fun-filled environment.

The Children?s Fiesta 2011? is proudly presented by the pair of The Queens of Africa Project and Silverbird Communications. Silverbird Communications is one of the largest entertainment
Companies in Africa consisting of Silverbird Entertainment, Silverbird Cinemas, Rhythm FM and MBGN [Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria beauty pageant]. The recent partnership with Queens of Africa to bring the fiesta was borne out of the need to give children fun, whilst helping
them achieve some sense of self-realisation and a positive outlook to the future. Mrs. Yinka Ogundimu, Programmes Manager for Silverbird Television and Spokesperson for the Silverbird Group, says of the partnership ?...We [Silverbird and The Queens of Africa] share the same belief in giving children a fun platform to be educated whilst being entertained?
Entrepreneur and Founder of the Queens of Africa Project, Taofick Okoya, describes Queens of Africa as more than just fashion dolls, and an avenue ?...to show African children that ?black is beautiful? by enabling them to play with dolls that reflect their culture and heritage?.

Each doll represents a different tribe of Nigeria; There is Nneka (Igbo), Azeezah (Hausa) and Wuraola (Yoruba), and they are sold in various outfits, the most popular being those dressed in
traditional attire. Okoya comments that ?The Queens of Africa dolls were created to inspire and influence the coming generation, especially the ?Girl Child?, so in designing the dolls and their
outfits, the team bore this in mind.? He adds that ?To the vast majority of people, toys are mere play items or pacifiers for children and little thought goes into which toys best serve the purpose as a tool for a child's development.

Both Companies (Silverbird and Fico Solutions), have the support of an impressive ?Who?s Who? list of Nigerian Artistes and Celebrities, many of whom are set to take part in the Children?s Fiesta event. This grand event will hold at the Silverbird premises in Lekki, and will be broadcast live. The event will have about a hundred children in attendance, and guests will be
selected through invites sent out to various schools within Lagos State, and also through tickets won over the radio.

On May 21st however, the creme-De-la-creme of the fashion industry will gather at Suo Chao Restaurant,Eleganza Shopping mall opposite VGC to raise funds for the Children's Fiesta at a Fashion Auction which will feature the best of Nigerian Fashion designers such as Lanre Da Silva Ajayi,Ituen Bassey,Lisa Folawiyo and so many more.

The event will also co-incide with the launch of the Queens of Africa books based on the Queens of Africa dolls that are already familiar to Nigerian children. According to Okoya, the role of the books is the first step in taking the Queens of Africa project global. Okoya is passionate about giving young black children a strong start in life including making sure that the toys, music and books given to them convey positive messages about their heritage. His team worked with a
British children?s writer and NLP (Neuro Linguistic programming) specialist, Judy Bartkowiak (JudyBee) and Yetis (LittlePinkPebble), a Children?s Illustrator from Singapore, and the first is titled ?Learn Confidence? as this was the first life skill that Okoya and Bartkowiak identified as being required amongst young Nigerian girls. On 27th May, the first seven books will be available in more than a dozen countries and in many formats from paperbacks, Amazon Kindle and Kobo Books through to iBooks for the iPad.

At the moment the dolls are sold all over Nigeria in major toy store chains (like Game, Shoprite, Park ?N? Shop and Silverbird Galleria), but they have not been launched in Europe or the USA, yet. The Queens of Africa books are available for pre-order from all good bookstores
including Amazon UK, USA, Germany, France, Canada and Japan, Amazon Kindle and other formats.

Read More

The Queens of Africa and Silverbird Communications Present The Children’s Fiesta 2011

There is a major new event in the African calendar. On Friday, the 27th of May in Lagos, Children will be introduced to a fun new way of learning as the ‘Children’s Fiesta’ is unveiled.

The event tagged ‘Children’s Fiesta 2011’ is an annual event kicking off this year with the theme ‘’Taking Tomorrow Today’’, specifically designed to inspire kids as well as enhance their career development skills for the future in a subtle and fun-filled environment.

‘The Children’s Fiesta 2011’ is proudly presented by the pair of The Queens of Africa Project and Silverbird Communications.

Silverbird Communications is one of the largest entertainment Companies in Africa consisting of Silverbird Entertainment, Silverbird Cinemas, Rhythm FM and MBGN [Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria beauty pageant]. The recent partnership with Queens of Africa to bring the fiesta was borne out of the need to give children fun, whilst helping them achieve some sense of self-realisation and a positive outlook to the future. Mrs. Yinka Ogundimu, Programmes Manager for Silverbird Television and Spokesperson for the Silverbird Group, says of the partnership “...We [Silverbird and The Queens of Africa] share the same belief in giving children a fun platform to be educated whilst being entertained’

Entrepreneur and Founder of the Queens of Africa Project, Taofick Okoya, describes Queens of Africa as more than just fashion dolls but an avenue “...to show African children that ‘black is beautiful’ by enabling them to play with dolls that reflect their culture and heritage”. Each doll represents a different tribe of Africa; There is Nneka (Igbo), Azeehah (Hausa) and Wuraola (Yoruba), and they are sold in various outfits, the most popular being those dressed in traditional attire. Okoya comments that “The Queens of Africa dolls were created to inspire and influence the coming generation, especially the ‘Girl Child’, so in designing the dolls and their outfits, the team bore this in mind.” He adds that “To the vast majority of people, toys are mere play items or pacifiers for children and little thought goes into which toys best serve the purpose as a tool for a child's development. Children mentally absorb positive and negative influences which can later be detected in their character, especially in their teenage years. We need to see toys for what they really are…..A fun developmental tool.” He felt it was critical to have dolls that represent African heritage so the Queens of Africa program was born.

Both Companies have the support of an impressive ‘Who’s Who’ list of Nigerian Artistes and Celebrities, many of whom are set to take part in the Children’s Fiesta event. This grand event will hold at the Silverbird premises in Lekki, and will be broadcast live. The event will have about a hundred children in attendance, and guests will be selected through invites sent out to various schools within Lagos State, and also through tickets won over the radio.

The event will also coincide with the launch of the Queens of Africa books based on the Queens of Africa dolls that are already familiar to Nigerian children. According to Okoya, the role of the books is the first step to taking the Queens of Africa project global. Okoya is passionate about giving young black children a strong start in life including making sure that the toys, music and books given to them convey positive messages about their heritage. His team worked with a British children’s writer and NLP (Neuro Linguistic programming) specialist, Judy Bartkowiak (JudyBee) and Yetis (LittlePinkPebble), a Children’s Illustrator from Singapore, and the first is titled ‘Learn Confidence’ as this was the first life skill that Okoya and Bartkowiak identified as being required amongst young Nigerian girls. On 27th May, the first seven books will be available in more than a dozen countries and in many formats from paperbacks, Amazon Kindle and Kobo Books through to iBooks for the iPad. At the moment the dolls are sold all over Nigeria in major toy store chains (like Game, Shoprite, Park ‘N’ Shop and Silverbird Galleria), but they have not been launched in Europe or the USA, yet. The Queens of Africa books are available for pre-order from all good bookstores including Amazon UK, USA, Germany, France, Canada and Japan, Amazon Kindle and other formats.

The Silverbird Group was founded by Ben Murray Bruce in 1980 and has grown to a diverse holding of Radio, TV, beauty Pageant sponsor, and movie distribution via its Cinema holdings in Nigeria, Ghana, Zambia, and Kenya. The group is credited for bringing back Cinema to Lagos in 2004, and establishing Ghana’s first-ever Cineplex of five theatres fully equipped to international standards and with Dolby digital surround sound and contiguous with a media store.

Read More

The Children's Fiesta 2011: Taking Tomorrow Today!

The ‘Children’s Fiesta’ is a child empowerment program designed to celebrate the African child’s positive attributes through fun filled and enlightening activities. This year’s edition will be held at a prestigious venue in Victoria Island. The inaugural event is themed "Taking Tomorrow Today’’ and is specifically designed to inspire kids as well as enhance their career development skills for future.

After great deliberation and consultation we at Fico solution Ltd, (the organizers of The Children’s Fiesta and company behind the Queen of Africa project.) felt the need to extend the privilege of partnership to you in our inaugural children’s day celebration on Saturday, May 28, 2011.

To the vast majority of people, toys are mere play item or pacifier for children a lot of thought does not really go into which toys best serve the purpose as a great tool towards a child's development. A lot of is dumped in the mind of children subliminally both positive and negative which can be later detected in their character at a much later stage (especially in their teenage years). We need to see toys for what they really are…..A fun developmental tool.

Generations over the years having been passing on to kids toys in different shapes and sizes not fully realizing the psychological impact it has on them. In this age and time our thoughts, decisions and actions are influenced externally especially in young children.

And what better way do we have than to usher in this project with the forthcoming children’s day! A day where we take time off our busy schedules to have fun with our kids and pay them the true attention they need. So ‘Children’s Day Fiesta 2011’ has been put together with a double goal of creating a platform for introducing ‘Queens of Africa’ as well as mark an event in grand style.
The event will see parents and their children participate in fun-filled activities and win ‘Queens of Africa ‘dolls. A onetime event, this will inspire and more so set the ball rolling for a clearer perception of African Dolls and similar art.

Developed by entrepreneur and philanthropist Toafick Okoya, the program has reached tens of thousands of children across Africa contributing significantly to education programs, particularly in Nigeria. The website www.queensofafrica.com has lots of information about the Queens and the wider work the program is involved in.

You can also check us out on twitter or facebook:

Read More