A few weeks ago, the Miss Black Festival was launched in Kigali. It has been previously held in the US, UK, France, and other Western countries. The international “celebration of culture and empowerment” comes to Kigali when the country is yet to recover from the latest Miss Rwanda scandal.
For context, in October 2023, Dieudonne Ishimwe, aka Prince Kid, the founder and CEO of Miss Rwanda, the most followed and popular beauty pageant in Rwanda for over a decade, was found guilty on charges of soliciting sexual favors and rape, by a high court in Kigali. The pageant was later suspended.
The verdict came after almost two years of court proceedings that induced debate and controversy. The last Miss Rwanda was held in 2022 and crowned Miss Divine Muheto as the winner.
Miss Black Festival was launched in February, nearly after two years of no beauty pageants held in Rwanda. The organizers announced that the competition will begin on May 25. It was the first beauty pageant to officially partner with the Ministry of Youth and Culture, the same ministry that suspended Miss Rwanda.
Could the partnership between Miss Black Festival and the Ministry of Youth and Culture be the first indicator that the competition is reliable and free from Miss Rwanda’s fate? It is yet to be determined.
Miss Black comes with more than reliability. According to the announcement, the most differentiating factor between Miss Rwanda and Miss Black is the age limit and criteria. Any black women, despite their nationality, between the ages of 18 – 35 will be eligible to compete, instead of the 18-28 age limit of Miss Rwanda. This means Miss Black is likely to get a bigger number and more diverse contestants.
While Miss Rwanda’s official criteria were their projects and “Beauty, Brain and Culture”, which was ultimately judged during the televised interviews, Miss Black claim that it will judge participants not by looks but essentially on projects that contribute to a global understanding of the black community and actively support the Pan African movement.
The objective of this competition is to ensure that the competition accurately reflects the wide range of experiences that black women have.
The official website of Imanzi Ltd states that they analyze each applicant in-depth through in-depth interviews and online auditions. This, they say, guarantees that there is no favoritism.
Miss Black Festival, with its clear criteria, might draw competitors searching for a more open and objective stage on which to present their skills, which instills confidence in contestants.
Three winners will be announced at the big finale, with the winner receiving a USD 15,000 prize, the first and second runners-up receiving USD 5,000, and both receiving opportunities to support Black women globally—however, we’re not sure how they will do that just yet. This is different from Miss Rwanda because everyone was aware of the winner’s prize. For example, the last Miss Rwanda winner was given a brand-new car, a year’s supply of gas, Rwf 800,000 in monthly support, and the chance to represent numerous brands
Unlike Rwanda beauty contests, this one has specific regulations, and age restrictions, and is all about helping the Pan-African movement. We’re not sure if it’ll be as popular as Miss Rwanda, but it’s certainly giving black women a platform to showcase their talents on a worldwide scale.
