With Dubai set to host the first ever Miss Universe UAE, our very own Oliver Nakakande, Miss Uganda 2019 is among the 30 ladies vying for the crown.
“I feel so emotional & humbled right now to have made it to top 30 Miss Universe UAE,” Nakakande posted.
Being a UAE resident between the ages of 18 and 28, Nakakande passed the auditions and will be competing for the crown on November 7.
Unlike other pageants, the 30 finalists will not compete in swim wear but will have several pageant activities, such as photoshoot, runway challenges, commercial shoots, preliminary activewear, evening gown and close door panel interviews.
“Swimwear will not be a part of Miss Universe UAE. An identity of a woman is beyond the parameters of her sculpture. And, that is why, we are changing to make a difference and do something that nobody in 70 years of Miss Universe history has done,” stated one of the organisers, Sharihan Al Mashary, the first-ever female Emirati Hotel GM in the UAE.
The official winner of Miss Universe UAE will advance to the international stage, the 70th edition of the Miss Universe that will be held in Israel in December.
Nakakande’s emotional note
Growing up in Uganda, I experienced a lot of challenges as a girl on issues about adolescence, menstrual health, sex education and violence. Sadly, so many adolescents in the world today are still experiencing these challenges and this has resulted to the increase of HIV in adolescents & premature deaths. According to UNAIDS, between 1.16 million to 2.3 million adolescents between the ages of 10 and 19 were living with HIV worldwide. Out of devastation, I researched about the cause and found out that this problem was caused by lack of sex education & awareness in our local communities.
Since then, I have been advocating for girls rights & creating awareness on sex education. Girls have the right to learn about their bodies. Girls have the right to say NO. Girls have the right to access contraceptives. Through my foundation, I started a yearly outreach program called ‘keep a girl child in school & keep them alive’ outreach program focused on encouraging teenage mothers to go back to school after birth, creating awareness on sex education & supplying menstrual pads in communities.
To the young girl looking up to me, I’m representing you today at Miss Universe UAE 🇦🇪 and letting you know that your dreams and ambitions are still VALID If this girl from Uganda made her way to the UAE, a country i’ll be forever indebted to, GOD’S OWN COUNTRY so rich in diversity & unimaginable opportunities can make it this far, YOU TOO can make it.
The UNIVERSE is yours & no man can stop your dreams unless you give up. I pledge to you today to use this platform to continue fighting for your rights to existence & better living conditions. I promise to be your voice of change. Thank you all for your support thus far. I pray that our creator will give us the strength & power to continue using our platform for the betterment of our DEAR UNIVERSE.
Love,
Oliver Nakakande