Success in pageant will allow Blessing to expand her work for charity
CROWNED Miss Ireland International last weekend, Blessing Mutamba said pageants boosted her confidence and expanded her charity work.
She was judged to be the best in two categories before being crowned queen – best in interview and most photogenic.
‘After those two awards I thought “OK, this is good, if I go home with these two titles it will be great”, but then when they announced the winner I broke down – it was too good to be true,’ said Ms Mutamba, who lives in Guernsey.
‘It was rewarding to just be given a chance and at the end of the day it’s a competition where people are there to win, so I was really proud of all the hard work I had put into it.’
She took part in her first pageant in 2011 as a trial run and has competed in four others since.
‘I think pageants are evolving now, especially when you compare them to what they used to be,’ the 23-year-old said.
‘They’re now more about empowering women, giving them a voice and a platform, rather than just walking around in a pretty dress.
‘I have learnt a lot of different things about teamwork, humility, staying humble but more importantly feeling comfortable in myself.
‘For me, pageants are a celebration of being true to yourself, not being a mould of what [others] want or expect you to be.’
Having set up her own charitable organisation at 17-year-old called Giving Through Labels, Miss Mutamba admires how much charity work pageants encourage in the contestants.
‘Charity work is something that has been close to my heart for a long time and something I would do on my own anyway, the pageant just adds another layer of motivation.’
Winning the title is an opportunity for Miss Mutamba to develop her platform and charitable outreach.
‘I have made it my mission to develop and implement entrepreneurial mentoring schemes aimed at young people living in Zimbabwe.’
Originally from Zimbabwe, she completed her masters degree at Falmouth University where the course served as inspiration to her newest charitable project.
‘I was able to see how far young people can take the smallest of opportunities and in a place like Zimbabwe where jobs are scarce, I think it is an invaluable skill to teach.’
Mirroring the incubator programme in her masters, Miss Mutamba said providing support and a team that can help generate ideas can provide young entrepreneurs with the skills and knowledge to sustain themselves financially which would be a significant achievement in countries like Zimbabwe.
