Who are you wearing? Kitui taps model to sell its outfits

In the fashion world, it is not uncommon to hear a model asked “who are you wearing?”

The answer is usually one fashion designer or another. A young Kenyan model will soon be answering “Kitui County” to that question.

Maureen Nzisa, 23, is in the final stages of signing a deal with the county to be their ambassador and be dressed by the Kitui County Textile Centre (Kicotec).

Nzisa is the reigning Miss SuperStar Kenya, a title she bagged in August last year and which she will be holding until 2022.

Her engagement with Kitui County was announced by Governor Charity Ngilu on April 10 via her official social media accounts.

“Nzisa is an enviable ambassador for Kitui County and Kenya and we will be supporting her all the way when she contests for Miss SuperStar World Beauty Contest in Bodrum in Turkey next month,” Governor Ngilu posted.

County ambassadorship

The pageant in Turkey was, however, cancelled due to the strict Covid-19 containment measures in the country. 

Had it progressed as planned, Nzisa would have flown out of Kenya yesterday.

Speaking to the Sunday Nation, Nzisa was excited about the opportunity to represent Kenya in Turkey, in what would have been her first trip outside Africa.

“Kitui County is going to be making my outfits for the competition. Not only for the competition, but I want always to stand out wherever I go,” she said. “All the outfits I’ll be wearing for the competition, and for any competition I’ll be doing henceforth, they will be made by Kicotec.”

With that competition put on ice, she will now focus on her local projects, key among them the county ambassadorship. It will involve her not being just an ambassador but a mobiliser, and she plans to champion smart farming.

“I’m hoping that with smart farming, I can change the lives of many people on the ground, because we have big chunks of land in Kitui but then the land is not in use,” she said.

Beauty with brains

She will also be a representative of Kitui youth in a number of forums.

Hailing from Voo village in Kitui South, Nzisa is a student at Mt Kenya University.

“She is the complete embodiment of beauty with brains and an inspiration to the girl child across the nation,” Governor Ngilu said. Nzisa thanked the governor for the recognition and the role she gave her.

“I am really humbled and I really appreciate this opportunity she has given me, because I’m going to use it in a positive way to empower the youth and to show other youth that all dreams are valid as long as you believe in them,” she said.

The model has also been engaged in a number of charity projects, among them sharing Christmas with street families in Nairobi last year and helping distribute food to needy slum families early last year.

She hopes to be Miss World Kenya one day to fly the country’s flag all over the world.

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