Miss World SA’s Nande Mabala excited to hear local heroes’ inspiring stories

Miss World SA 2024 first runner-up Nande Mabala puts sustainability first in all she does — including when picking out her gown for the Daily Dispatch Local Heroes Awards on Thursday. 

The model, social activist and academic was having a fitting done in Cape Town on Wednesday for a gorgeous dress from Mode By Michaela Romy, a women-owned high-end couture rental service straight from the runway.

“I’m all about sustainable fashion,” Mabala, 27, said.

“Collaborating with small businesses and businesses like Mode, we go to so many events.

“I’m so happy there are more companies rotating clothes.

“When it comes to beauty pageants, for the longest time it was always about your [external] beauty, your walk.

“With Miss World SA it has to do with your talk, you cannot become a finalist if you don’t have a cause.

“My life has always been about living my truth and being a blueprint for young people, it’s a tangible representation of dreams realised — win or lose, I take everyone on the journey with me.” 

The first princess of Miss World SA for 2024 — who placed third at the 2023 pageant — may be hanging up her sash, but not before attending her first Local Heroes event at the International Convention Centre.

With headline sponsor Johnson’s — a brand of Kenvue (formerly Johnson & Johnson Consumer Health) — the 10th annual ceremony will honour 12 community leaders committed to positive change. 

Throughout 2024, the Dispatch has featured more than 40 nominees who have spoken about their passions — from feeding children and saving abandoned animals to planting food gardens.

“I am really excited to be coming to see the 12 heroes and listen to what they do and how it all started,” Mabala said.

“I know each gets an opportunity to speak about their initiatives — nothing makes a person come alive more than speaking about their passions, and it’s closely related to what Miss World SA stands for, which is beauty with a purpose.

“I am excited to connect with them and speak about my own passions as well.”

Being a princess, however, does not mean she will not get her hands dirty. 

Since its launch in 2021, the Nande Mabala Foundation has established farming projects at Siyafuneka Primary School, where 40 schoolchildren learn the basics of planting, growing and harvesting crops.

Her foundation has also organised food parcel drop-offs, sanitation drives and workshops on soft skills development. 

Under her “Go Green SA” project banner, the foundation uses agriculture as a teaching tool for pupils to better their soft skills and contribute to the fight against global warming in Zwelethemba, Worcester, in the Western Cape.

“Our focus is on teaching children how to farm as well as soft skills such as courage and discipline for a deeper understanding of themselves — to empower children from a community like my own, which is a township,” Mabala said.

“Go Green SA built two farms with two schools in Mbizana.

“We teach the pupils not only to commercialise the farm and sell the crops to local businesses but also to plough back into the school either by developing school infrastructure or funding school outings.

“I want to be able to implement this in more schools, I’ve learnt how to plant in two hours and even if there are floods we have trench beds where the water flows down to crops that need more water like potatoes and pumpkins, so that when it flows it won’t damage crops like beans.”

Though not from the Eastern Cape, Mabala laughed when asked how she felt on her visit to the province. 

“I have a very funny story with the Eastern Cape; I’m Xhosa so it was dubbed by Umhlobo Wenene that they were ‘adopting me’ into the Eastern Cape, whether I’m from there or not.

“Because I’m Xhosa, I’m representing the province, and I think that speaks to the nature of the people.

“Though there is little, they give what they have.

“So many SA heroes like Nelson Mandela, even Siya Kolisi, who come from there, there is heart, it’s the nature of ubuntu, it lives and breathes that sentiment.” 

The Local Heroes Awards will be streamed live on the Daily Dispatch YouTube channel from 6.30pm. 

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