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Miss Carnival Zimbabwe 2013, Dananai Chipunza

Brenda Phiri Entertainment Reporter—
As preparations for the second edition of the Harare International Carnival gather momentum, the search for Miss Carnival Queen Zimbabwe to be held on May 16 has begun. Regional castings to scout for aspiring contestants start tomorrow in Mutare and Gweru’s Zimbabwe Tourism Authority offices.  Masvingo and Bulawayo will conduct their castings on March 23 while  Beitbridge and Victoria Falls auditions will be held on March 25.

March 29 will see Queen castings in Chinhoyi and Bindura while Harare auditions have been scheduled for April 5. ZTA spokesperson, Sugar Chagonda, encouraged models across the country to register and participate at the regional castings to stand a chance to win the prestigious crown.

“We are calling upon intelligent, top models of character to participate in the auditions. The Carnival Queen is not just another pageant but it is a platform for selecting talent and beauty that would represent the country not only as a tourism ambassador but in all spheres. As such, the auditions are meant to identify the best from all provinces as we are looking at someone with the ability to assume an ambassadorial role for brand Zimbabwe” he said.

He added that they were abiding to international standards on the selection criteria since the overall winner would represent the country at an international pageant.

“Interested participants are expected to be at least 1,72m tall, be between the ages of 18 and 23, posses at least five O Levels , never been married and have no child. They must be Zimbabweans or possess any Zimbabwean identity document regardless of their race.” The beauty pageant will run under the theme “Celebrating the Beauty of our Diversity” which is in support of the 2014 Carnival theme “Celebrating our Diversity”. Thus, the pageant will be a platform to appreciate a diverse knowledge of Zimbabwe’s heritage, culture, tourism and all spheres of human existence.

Reigning Miss Carnival Dananai Chipunza raised the country’s flag high during the Miss International finals held in Malaysia in December last year. Chipunza made it into the Top 10 and won Miss Talent second runner-up title. She was also appointed brand ambassador for Asian Metropolitan University in southern Africa.

With such an outstanding record, pressure would be on the next Queen to emulate or to surpass Chipunza.

The crowned Queen will lead the Harare International Carnival Street Party on May 24.