On Saturday, Chidimma Adetshina was crowned Miss Universe Nigeria. Less than a month before the pageant, she was originally a contestant in the Miss South Africa pageant. Adetshina, a 23-year-old law student, was born in Soweto, South Africa, and spent her childhood in Cape Town. Her father is from Nigeria, and her mother has South African and Mozambican heritage.
As Adetshina progressed in the Miss South Africa pageant, social media users questioned her eligibility, leading to xenophobic messages on platforms like X and Instagram. The Miss South Africa organization requested the South African Home Affairs Department to verify Adetshina's citizenship due to concerns about her mother's alleged fraud and identity theft to obtain citizenship for her daughter in 2001.
The department's investigation revealed that Adetshina herself could not have been involved in the theft as she was an infant at the time. Adetshina subsequently withdrew from the Miss South Africa pageant for safety reasons.
On August 14, she announced her participation in the Miss Universe Nigeria pageant and emerged as the winner on August 31. Adetshina expressed her honor and humility at being crowned Miss Universe Nigeria and emphasized her commitment to promoting African unity and breaking down barriers that divide the continent.
She will represent Nigeria at the Miss Universe competition on November 16, where she will compete against Miss South Africa Mia le Roux, the first deaf contestant to win the Miss South Africa pageant, and Miss USA 2024 Alma Cooper from Michigan.
