We've had Bollywood, we've had Brazil and now it's time for Africa chic. Selfridges has had the obligatory window display, and this summer you can't even pop into Accessorize for a pair of flip-flops without being met by a wall of zebra print.

I have no problem with the principle of plundering cultures for their catwalk potential, but there's something worrying about an entire continent being reduced to animal prints and primary colours. I want to be thrilled when I read in countless magazines that Africa chic is this season's key look, but then I open the pages and it's either leopard print skirts or tatty beaded necklaces that are no more African than the Pope. Have a look at the labels of that "African print" dress you just bought, be it high street or designer, and it's more likely to be made in China than in Chad. And do you really think the Masai community will get rich from the "cellulite-busting" MBT trainers they are said to have inspired?

And yet, that Africa is fashionable has to be good in some ways. At a recent talk on Africa and fashion organised by Roots (a joint initiative between the Arts Council and the BBC) as part of the Africa 05 season, the discussion turned to the isolation many black designers feel when trying to break into the mainstream. It's all very well woven fabric or beading being "in", but this must translate to open doors or, better yet, hard cash.

"It should be about increasing the profile of African designers, whether on the continent or part of the diaspora," says Rachel Lasebikan, a designer with 10 years' experience who had reached fashion's holy grail - a line in Topshop - before going back to school at Central St Martins with a view to launching her own ethical label, Mojisola, later this year.

Cynical or not, this season's obsession with all things African-inspired does at least mean that patterns, fabrics and jewellery previously dismissed as "too ethnic" are now positively mainstream. This means that fashion houses can no longer use the excuse that such styles don't translate or travel well.