Brunette Makanyiso Places Top 6 in Africa and Top 24 Globally in Miss World Beauty With a Purpose Challenge

Zimbabwe’s Brunette Makanyiso has achieved a major milestone at the Miss World 2026 competition after securing a place among the Top 6 African finalists in the prestigious Beauty With a Purpose challenge. Her achievement also places her among the Top 24 contestants globally in the challenge, giving Zimbabwe a strong presence in one of the most important components of the international pageant. The official finalist announcement places Makanyiso alongside representatives from Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Sierra Leone and Uganda. The six finalists were selected for their humanitarian initiatives and the impact of their work in their respective communities. Her qualification represents an important moment in her Miss World journey and further highlights the role of social impact in modern pageantry.

The official Top 6 finalists from Africa are Ghana’s Rumzia Sule, Kenya’s Trizah Muhenje Akala, Malawi’s Ireen Navicha, Sierra Leone’s Maryam Lorba Konneh, Uganda’s Trivia Elle Muhoza and Zimbabwe’s Brunette Makanyiso. Their selection places six African contestants in the global Top 24 of the Beauty With a Purpose challenge. The achievement is significant because the competition looks beyond traditional pageant elements such as appearance, stage presence and presentation. Beauty With a Purpose places emphasis on projects that address real social challenges and demonstrate a contestant’s commitment to helping communities. Makanyiso’s advancement therefore reflects the strength of the cause she has carried onto the Miss World stage as well as her ability to communicate its importance internationally.

Makanyiso’s Beauty With a Purpose advocacy has focused on poverty alleviation and creating opportunities for young people through practical support, education and skills development. Before travelling to Vietnam for the Miss World competition, she took part in activities supporting vulnerable communities and young people. She visited the Teen Rescue Mission as part of activities linked to International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, where she saw young people receiving training in areas including poultry farming, sewing, baking, welding and life skills. She also highlighted the importance of equipping young people with practical skills that can help them build sustainable futures and reduce vulnerability to social challenges. Her work demonstrates how a pageant platform can be used to draw attention to issues that affect communities beyond the competition itself.

Her community work has also included initiatives aimed at supporting vulnerable children and girls. During her activities before the Miss World journey, Makanyiso and her partners distributed sanitary products to girls and winter blankets to children in need. These efforts form part of a wider approach to poverty alleviation that recognises the connection between access to basic resources, education and economic opportunity. Her advocacy has consistently placed young people at the centre of her message, particularly through skills development and mentorship. By bringing these experiences to an international platform, she has given Zimbabwean social challenges greater visibility while showing how practical community initiatives can form the foundation of meaningful advocacy.

The Beauty With a Purpose challenge remains an important part of the Miss World competition because it gives contestants an opportunity to demonstrate the work they do outside the traditional pageant environment. The challenge places emphasis on humanitarian and community projects, allowing contestants to present causes that demonstrate their commitment to creating positive change. Contestants are expected to communicate the importance of their initiatives while showing how their work can make a difference in the lives of others. Makanyiso’s progress into the African Top 6 shows that her advocacy has resonated at a continental level. Her inclusion among the Top 24 globally gives her an even larger platform to represent the issues and communities connected to her project.

Makanyiso is competing in the 75th Anniversary Edition of Miss World in Vietnam, where contestants have been taking part in a wide range of activities and challenges. Her journey has included cultural experiences, official appearances, interviews and other competitive stages designed to assess contestants beyond their physical presentation. Her participation in the festival has formed part of her campaign to represent Zimbabwe on the global stage. She has also gone through the crucial closed-door interview stage, where contestants have the opportunity to demonstrate their personality, communication skills, ambitions and understanding of their causes away from the public spectacle. The Beauty With a Purpose achievement adds another strong result to her campaign as she continues competing for the Miss World crown.

The other five African finalists also bring strong social-impact stories to the competition, making the continental Top 6 particularly competitive. Ghana’s Rumzia Sule has focused on youth empowerment, entrepreneurship and leadership through her Project Inspire Ghana initiative. Kenya’s Trizah Muhenje Akala has been associated with education, women’s empowerment and child welfare, while also promoting African culture through dance and storytelling. Malawi’s Ireen Navicha has worked to support young girls and teenage mothers, while Uganda’s Trivia Elle Muhoza has advanced her Wings of Hope initiative, which focuses on vocational training, mentorship and support for single mothers and survivors of gender-based violence. Sierra Leone’s Maryam Lorba Konneh completes a group of African finalists whose projects demonstrate the broad range of issues being addressed through Beauty With a Purpose.

For Zimbabwe, Makanyiso’s Top 6 African finish provides a significant source of national pride and keeps the country firmly in contention within one of Miss World’s most closely watched challenges. Her result also shows that the international pageant increasingly offers contestants a platform to discuss issues affecting their communities. Instead of limiting their campaigns to fashion, beauty and entertainment, contestants can use the competition to highlight poverty, education, skills development, women’s empowerment and other social priorities. Makanyiso’s focus on practical skills and opportunities for young people gives her advocacy a clear connection to economic independence and community development. Her continued progress therefore carries significance beyond her individual pageant campaign because it gives Zimbabwean causes an international audience.

The Top 24 global placement also gives Makanyiso another opportunity to strengthen her position as the Miss World competition moves towards its decisive stages. Her journey has already required her to balance public appearances, interviews, advocacy activities and competitive challenges while representing Zimbabwe in an unfamiliar environment. Reaching the Beauty With a Purpose Top 24 demonstrates that her campaign has gained recognition among a strong international field of contestants. The challenge requires contestants to demonstrate purpose through real community engagement rather than relying solely on pageant presentation. With the African Top 6 now confirmed, attention will turn to the next stage and whether Makanyiso can continue advancing in the global competition.

Brunette Makanyiso’s qualification among the Top 6 African finalists and Top 24 globally is therefore a significant achievement in her Miss World 2026 campaign. Her progress places Zimbabwe alongside Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Sierra Leone and Uganda in the final African group for the Beauty With a Purpose challenge. More importantly, the result gives greater visibility to her work around poverty alleviation, youth empowerment, skills development and support for vulnerable communities. Whatever the final outcome of the challenge, reaching this stage confirms that her advocacy has earned recognition on an international platform. As the Miss World journey continues in Vietnam, Makanyiso will carry both the hopes of Zimbabwe and the message of her Beauty With a Purpose project into the next stage of the competition.