Nadia Umutoniwase, 20, looked so confident that she would make it through the Miss Rwanda auditions, last Saturday’s Miss Rwanda auditions held in Huye District, Southern Province.

Her hopes to progress, however, faded in just one second when she failed to impress any of the judges; Mike Karangwa, Jolly Mutesi or Evelyn Umurerwa, while presenting her project that will aim at encouraging Rwandans, especially the youth, to join hands in fighting drug use.

When each of the three judges presented their ‘No’ tag she returned to the waiting room with very little hope to progress to the next round.

"When all the judges gave me a ‘NO’ after presenting my project, I totally lost hope and thought that my chances of becoming Miss Rwanda 2020 had ended there. By God’s grace, I made it to the next round," Umutoniwase told The New Times after the auditions exercise. 

Surprisingly, Umutoniwase ended up winning the jury’s vote of approval and progressed to the next round.

"To be honest, I was surprised to hear the moderator announcing my name among the girls who progressed to the next round. I am going to revisit my project so I don’t miss out of the competition in the next round,” she added.

The Kamonyi-born contestant, who is in her level one, pursuing Journalism and Communication at the University of Rwanda, Huye Campus, was among the seven contestants selected to represent Southern Province and compete nationwide during the ongoing Miss Rwanda beauty contest alongside Diane Igihozo, Claudette Umwariwase, Hope Joy Imanishimwe, Teta Hense Musana, Josiane Mumporeze and Jolie Ange Ingabire.

The seven contestants beat the other 10 girls in a tight competition, as they looked to vie for the Miss Rwanda 2020 title.

The Southern Province recorded the biggest number of aspirants (79) who registered to compete in the beauty contest’s auditions so far, compared to Northern Province’s 75 and Western Province’s 50.

 However, only 29 turned up for the auditions held at Hotel Credo. 17 of them were given a green light to compete while 12 failed to meet the competition weight and height standards.

Kinyarwanda continues to dominate the auditions during the Question-Answer sessions, as none of the 17 contestants managed to respond in either English, French or Kiswahili, the three international languages recognised by the Rwandan government.

Upcountry auditions resume next Saturday at Silent Hill Hotel in Kayonza District to select the girls who will represent the Eastern Province at the Miss Rwanda 2020 competition.

Nadia Umutoniwase (R) presenting her project to the judges as the event's host Martina Abera looks on. / Courtesy

Contestants congratulate themselves after winning the auditions. / Courtesy