In a week’s time, Kilifi County will be on the World Tourism map when one of its daughters will be making it to the stage of the World Beauty Pageant in Dubai.
Kilifi county has for the first time produced the first ever Miss Kenya under the young category commonly known as Mini-Miss Kenya.
The nine-year-old beauty pageant Margaret Mbodze Andrea from Rabai sub-county won the slot after beating 39 counties to emerge the winner of an online beauty contest that led her fly the Kilifi flag high.
Kilifi’s young girl and pride paid a courtesy call to Kilifi Governor Gideon Mung’aro in his office where she expressed her excitement about the assignment lying ahead.
“I am excited to have emerged as the first winner in Kenya hailing from Kilifi County. Indeed this is a great moment for me and my county,” she said.
With already an invitation to represent Kenya in a global beauty show in Dubai late this month, she assured Kenyans not to disappoint the country.
“I have dreamt to visit Dubai and move around this world but didn’t know how. Now that my dream has come true I won’t let my country and county down,” she said.
Little Mbodze who is a class three CBC student in Kilifi exhibited her environmentalist skills and interests during her visit to the governor and presented a beautifully designed beach plastic artistic creation of a tree flower to the governor which she said her project will be to see the beach remains clean from plastic.
The beauty queen however asked the Governor to partner with schools and youngsters on promoting art and skills to ensure Kilifi becomes a home of talents and abilities.
Kilifi Governor Gideon Mung’aro was excited after receiving the young successful beauty queen. He offered to pay for her a two-way flight from Kenya to Dubai and back as a gesture of good faith.
The Governor said Kilifi was a home of many talents that can lead an international interest and promote tourism.
The governor said he is already in top discussion with partners to give land so that he can quickly start building a mega-sports complex that will promote talent and also tourism.
He pointed out the young beauty as a good example of raising the county flag high and assured Kilifi people that once the international entertainment complex centre is complete, Kilifi will become the home of many talents like the runners in Eldoret.
Josephine Nyadzua, mother to the beauty pageant also expressed her excitement toward her daughter.
Ms Nyadzua, a single mother of two said, she was looking forward to seeing Mbodze become Miss World in future and meet her dreams as well as promoting environmental issues and tourism.
She said Mbodze is a passionate girl who learns things very first and has a lot of interest in environmental issues.
“It has been a long journey but my daughter has made us proud. She has a big dream in the modelling industry and I don’t want to fail her,” she said.
