Lesego Chombo wears P150k Miss Botswana crown
Lesego Chombo’s lucky stars were by her side on Saturday as she won Miss Botswana 2022 title during the grand finale held at Fairscape Prescient in Gaborone. To put cherry on top of her win, Chombo won a diamond crown worth P150,000 designed by La Callaway and manufactured by KGK Diamond. The crown was inspired by a sorghum head that is also Botswana’s staple food.
Chombo, who is also a professional lawyer, managed to outshine fellow contestants. The young beautiful and talented woman from Maun has always proven to be one of the most talented and intelligent contestants. During the question time for her and other beauties, they were asked what way they thought Botswana’s beauty industry was the missing link to the nation’s economic diversity and her answer was that she learnt a lot from her Miss Botswana journey. “I learnt that the most important lesson is that the beauty industry is more than just looks. It is everything that we do throughout the day from the moment you wake up, getting dressed and when you leave to work so on and so forth.
I believe that it is more diverse than we can even imagine. Most importantly, one thing that I am truly proud of is our diamonds. I think that our diamonds can diversify our beauty industry and we need to acknowledge how diverse the beauty industry is in our country,” she answered. Meanwhile Tshepo Nthaga scooped the first princess title. She was one of the crowd’s favourites. Her answer to the same question was that, for Botswana to have a sustainable future, for a future that was for inclusivity and continuity, they needed to have various fraternities that they could get their finances from. She further explained that they have beef, diamonds and agriculture that have been supporting the country’s economy. She, however, pointed out that they needed to ensure that their beauty industry was as well represented. She said they could do that by having various agencies for division of power where each of the agencies could have responsibilities to tackle all the issues under the umbrella of beauty department.
However, the second princess Sebaga Manyapetsa who was also eyeing the crown when answering the question said Botswana was a beauty industry. She said she believed Botswana was yet to develop a lot of businesses and companies that produce beauty products so that they diversify the economy and make a living out of beauty products. She emphasised that many developed countries make a pot of money through producing and selling beauty products. She added that Batswana should grab the opportunity and start making money out of the beauty products.
Other women that made it to the top five include Goitsemodimo Sejai and Alipo Makosha who also fought hard to get away with the crown. Han C kept the audience captivated with beautiful performances. In the first parade he did a grand opening performance where the contestants walked on stage and introduced themselves to the audience. They all looked stunning in earth colour outfits designed by Nguo. Their second parade was a swim wear parade.
The night was breathtaking even though the weather nearly spoiled the event when a cold breeze started. The decorations, stage and everything were top notch. The audience was also dressed to kill. Miss World 2022 Karolina Beilawska also graced the grand finale and accompanied the former queen, Palesa Molefe whose shoes remains too big to fill in. When addressing the audience she urged them to keep on supporting ‘Mmampale’ as she is affectionately called by Batswana even after her reign. She added that it was through Molefe that Miss World visited Botswana for the very first time.
Molefe was emotional as she watched her recorded video clip where she was bidding the nation farewell. In the clip she said her journey as the reigning queen was a roller coaster. She added that she wanted to change her life and the lives of Batswana. She, however, pointed out that she learnt a lot of lessons throughout her journey. She thanked Batswana for an impact they had in her life as she awaits go see what her next chapter in life holds for her.
Some of the prominent faces at the event included the Minister of Youth, Gender, Sports and Culture Tumiso Rakgare and Minister of Finance and Economic Development Peggy Serame and Nokia Face of Africa winner who is also a, international super model, Kaone Kario.
She further explained that they have beef,
diamonds and agriculture that have been supporting the country’s
economy