Officials from the Miss Rwanda organisation this week signed a partnership deal with Miss High School Africa USA with a shared objective to empower young women through both pageants. Accompanied by Miss Rwanda 2019 Meghan Nimwiza and Miss Rwanda 2017 Elsa Iradukunda, Miss Rwanda Organization CEO Dieudonne Ishimwe, has, in the past week, been in the United States, where he has been holding talks with the team behind Miss High School Africa USA about the possibility of a partnership that will empower young women through both beauty pageants. The trio were part of a host of celebrities that attended the wedding of Miss Rwanda 2009 Grace Bahati and her husband Pacifique Murekezi, who tied the knot last weekend in Ohio, United States. After the wedding Ishimwe, his Communications Director Nimwiza and Iradukunda who currently serves as Miss Rwanda’s Director of Partnerships, on Friday, September 11, met the organisers of Miss High School and signed partnership deal that will see the two pageants work together after the latter unveiled plans to launch the beauty contest for high school students next year. Miss High School Africa USA is owned by American millionaire Ashley Shumba, a renowned trucking company owner who is known to be the man behind the Global Small Business Awards, an award event held in Dubai in partnership with Emirates Airlines. With his experience in organising the Global Small Business Awards, Shumba now wants to introduce Miss High School Africa USA, a beauty contest that will bring together contestants from different parts of Africa. The beauty pageant, which was initiated to empower young African women from high schools, will be taking place in different countries of Africa. The winner of the beauty contest will be rewarded with cash prizes (monthly salary), job opportunities, free accommodation for twelve months. She, alongside her first and second runners-up, will also be offered scholarships to study in the United States as the biggest prize for the contest. Before launching Miss High School Africa USA, organisers invited the organisers of Miss Rwanda, as a pageant which has so far established itself as one of the most successful beauty pageants on the continent so they can rake a leaf from their experience in organizing Miss Rwanda until it reached the international heights. Officials from both pageants shared experiences about how each pageant works in terms of organising beauty contests and the activities that beauty queens do throughout their reigns after winning the crowns. They also discussed how contestants who have talents can be supported to go to school so they can get a platform to grow their talents. “Miss Rwanda is a beauty contest which is there for young Rwandan women with an aim to push them from a level to another in all aspects. We will continue to put more effort into everything to ensure girls empowerment because it’s the main reason we are here and that’s why we are here. It’s one of the paths to achieving our objectives,” Nimwiza said. “As the beauty contest organisers, we are happy to see people appreciating what we do to the extent that beauty contests of such an international level like this [Miss High School Africa USA] express their interest to closely work hand in hand with us. It’s a pride for us, organisers, and the nation in general and we are looking forward to getting only better,” she added. The two pageants also plan to extend their partnerships beyond organising beauty contests.
