It is 15-minutes until show time, and backstage the Miss Sahara contestants are in a mild panic. The national costumes – in particular, the jaw dropping jewellery – are creating some last-minute hitches. Volunteers scramble to get the adornments in their correct positions, stacking layers of necklaces, rings and bracelets on the anxious pageant participants, snaking them around arms, legs, necks, hands and heads. The dressing room is an epic explosion of colour, prints, textures and beading.
For Nyaradzo (Nyara) Wekwete, who at 28 is the pageant’s oldest contestant, it’s a final chance to secure her bright-blue traditional isicholo hat before opting to escape the mayhem. “I’m going to go and listen to my music before I have a panic attack,” she says, slipping out of the dressing area, adjusting earpods as she leaves.
With nerves taut and the clock ticking, it’s time for some final words of encouragement from Miss Sahara founder Anyier Yuol, who appears in front of the throng in a sequinned showstopper frock, gathering the eight finalists into a huddle.
“I am so proud of you all,” she says. “You have all worked so hard to get to this stage. But now is the chance to showcase how beautiful each and every one of you is. Tonight is about showing everyone the essence and beauty of the African queen.”
The girls whoop in delight and head offstage to begin the proceedings that will culminate in the crowning of Miss Sahara 2023. The pageant is a celebration of Australian African women and kicks off with an elaborate national costume section, then a (non-judged) swimwear category and the evening gown finale. Throughout the journey the participants have been adorned with sashes and given lessons in deportment, styling and make-up. So far, so Miss Congeniality.
But while the event has all the hallmarks of a traditional beauty pageant (minus the mentions of world peace), Miss Sahara is so much more. The charismatic founder at the helm of the pageant is both its beating heart and its ambitious soul.
A South Sudanese refugee who spent the first decade of her life in Kenya’s Kakuma refugee camp, Anyier Yuol started Miss Sahara in 2018 after competing in local beauty pageants that sadly lacked diversity.
“I entered beauty pageants to increase my confidence,” explains Anyier. “But I noticed pretty quickly that I never saw other women who looked like me. African women and women of colour were poorly represented at these pageants. I saw this as an opportunity to launch Miss Sahara so we could celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Australian African women.
“But while I really love the beauty aspect of it and for increasing representation in the fashion industry, it’s the leadership aspect of the program that I am most excited by. It’s about empowering women from culturally diverse backgrounds to make real contributions to society.”
The annual competition is open to women from all over Australia, with each participant representing their African background. The 2023 cohort has women from Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Sudan, Ghana and the Congo and their progress is assessed over the night by a panel of judges. The women are from the large African communities spread throughout Australian suburbs.
One of the main facilitators of the Miss Sahara leadership program is Juliana Nkrumah, founder of African Women Australia and a legendary figure in the Africa diaspora, who now sits on the judging panel. She said she looks for women who can be passionate ambassadors, who can articulate about purpose and representing their communities. “As I tell the girls, it’s about what comes from the inside that’s important, not what’s on the outside.”
Anyier agrees with “Aunty Juliana” and is so passionate about the change- making aspect of Miss Sahara that the initiative is now part of her Lead Beyond Education charity, which provides life-changing education, leadership and human-rights advocacy for young women and girls from refugee backgrounds. Anyier believes in the power of change in her adopted country. She wants more inclusivity. She wants more diversity. She wants more equality. She wants contestants to dream big – and they are inspired by her passion.
For Rider Antwi, the 2022 winner, the program has not only helped give her a laser-beam focus to complete her studies while working to become a financial planner, but to see how to pay it forward in her own community.
“I wasn’t really interested in the beauty pageantry part of Miss Sahara as I am a tomboy. I am literally wearing pants under this dress, I swear,” Rider adds, laughing and lifting her voluminous skirt. “But I liked what Anyier was doing, especially around empowering young girls. I didn’t know anyone like her, especially a Black woman.
“Miss Sahara helped me to identify a gap in our culture around money,” Rider continues. “Parents don’t talk about money with their families. Traditionally, fathers see themselves as providers, so girls often miss out on being empowered. Now I have been running workshops for women on financial literacy and how important it is. The most important thing I learnt being a beauty queen is that I could also open doors for other women.”
Janine Baraka, a finalist who lives in South Australia, has been inspired to look for ways she can make a difference in Adelaide, home to a growing African community, and she has found her own way to give back.
“I work in the foster-care system where the percentage of African descendant children keeps on growing, but these children don’t really have an identity,” says Janine. “They think putting on African attire is taboo and they are ashamed to eat African food as it is foreign to them. So I ran a workshop on African culture, which many of these children attended, and they loved the chance to talk about their heritage. We don’t have anything as beautiful as Miss Sahara in South Australia, so I wanted to learn how I could make an impact and I’m now determined to look for new solutions.”
For Nyara Wekwete, a soon-to-be film school graduate, the experience has been nothing short of an awakening – personally and politically. “I am passionate about inclusion in films, as I grew up watching stories that weren’t about me,” she says.
“I’m also LGBT, so the Black, queer experience is the story I really want to tell [to] help break the stigma around it. A lot of families, like my parents, are not very accepting. I want kids who are like me to know that they are not alone, that what they are experiencing is not insanity, and how they feel is valid.”
Back at the pageant, the judges have whittled it down to the top three, who must each answer a curly question from one of the judges. First up is Afaf Saad, a stunning 23-year-old registered nurse from Sydney’s western suburbs, who is passionate about health education. The question is a doozy about beauty pageants and objectifying women. “Beauty pageants are more than just being a pretty face and glamour,” she answers. “They push you to do good and give back. It has taught me leadership skills and how to chase what I want, and what I want is change for my community.” The speech gets raucous applause (even without the mention of world peace).
Henrietta Adomako is up next and is asked about what could be her greatest contribution to the African community in Australia. The 21-year- old arrived in Australia four years ago from Ghana, travelling with her family to Australia to “find a better life”. It’s a dream that is coming true as she is completing her medical-science degree.
“My greatest contribution is to be a voice for the young girls out there who can’t speak for themselves,” she says with quiet confidence. “Being a medical student, I aspire to find cures for diseases that worry women and to foster a community where women feel safe to speak up about issues.”
After a final strut down the catwalk by all the contestants, the winner is finally announced and Sydney’s Henrietta Adomako is crowned Miss Sahara 2023. But in the world of beauty pageants, everyone’s a winner.
“If a girl like me – someone who is introverted and not at all confident about being out of my shell – can win Miss Sahara then it’s proof girls can be whatever they want to be,” Henrietta says. “That’s been my biggest lesson from being a part of Miss Sahara.”
The other contestants concur about the magic in the Miss Sahara recipe. For Nyara it has been a life-changing chance to find her own community in Australia. “There’s a sisterhood here that doesn’t happen back home,” she says. “It’s very tribal in Africa, but maybe here in the diaspora we find the things that bind us together even though we are so different from one another.” Maybe Miss Sahara has worked out the secret to world peace after all.
This story originally appeared in the September issue of marie claire Australia.
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
