THE international pageant is meant to open doors for local beauty queens such as Miss Lesotho 2016 Kiki Mokhohlane
. . . BPAL in bid to host first ever international pageant
Mohalenyane Phakela
THE Beauty Pageants Association of Lesotho (BPAL) has set for itself the lofty goal of hosting Lesotho’s first ever international pageant to commemorate Lesotho’s 50 years of independence.
According to BPAL President Tlali Tlali, Lesotho’s golden jubilee celebrations, on 4 October 2016, deserved to be marked with a momentous event that would put Lesotho on the global pageantry map.
“Our independence was a great achievement which some countries are still yearning for. Some countries are still waging wars for their liberty; something we attained 50 years ago,” he told the Weekender this week.
“An international pageant would promote this country in a way that has never been done before.”
Tlali said so far countries from “across Africa and Europe” had expressed interest in participating in the event
“We have already attracted prospective contestants from countries across Africa and Europe,” he said.
“We want the pageant to be held over a two-week period, with the contestants and international media serving the role of marketing Lesotho.”
To promote the tourism sector, Tlali said they were also planning to take the contestants on a tour of various attractions in the country.
“The idea is to boost Basotho businesses; especially the hospitality sector and the crafts market. By hosting such a pageant during that period, we also want to make every Mosotho remember the 50 years of independence and how the country benefitted.”
He said the international pageant was also meant to open doors for local beauty queens.
“BPAL sends more than five beauty queens to international pageants every year to countries where the people don’t know anything about Lesotho,” Tlali said.
“Hosting an international pageant will make it easier for people around the world to know about Lesotho and its rich heritage, which in turn will make it easier for our girls during those pageants as people will know what they are talking about.”
The other benefit of hosting Lesotho’s own event, he said, was that they would not be franchising any other international pageant which would preclude BPAL from paying royalties”.
However, Tlali conceded that as a non-profit organisation, BPAL did not have the resources to organize an event of that stature by itself.
“For this pageant to meet international standards, we need a lot of financial support. We also need money to secure a venue and other associated costs,” he said.
“We are calling on people of goodwill to help us realise this dream as it is not for our benefit, but for the country as a whole.”
