By Oluatoyin Alleyne
Guyana is being represented at this year’s Miss World Pageant in South Africa by a 24-year-old, multi-talented young woman who sees herself as level-headed, is confident and is of the opinion that her strongest points in the contest are her talent and her charity work.
Imarah Radix, who has lived between Guyana and England for the past few years, was recently selected by the Ken Chung-led Miss Guyana World committee as the queen to represent Guyana at the December 12 pageant. While Imarah has gone to school in England from her teenage years, she has always returned to Guyana to spend the holidays with her mother, Shahiba Radix.
Imarah’s father, Kenrick Radix, came from a well-known Grenadian family and was a lawyer who served as Minister of Legal Affairs in the Maurice Bishop government. He later returned to private practice and died after years of illness. Her mother Shahiba, served as Chief of Protocol in the Maurice Bishop government. According to Shahiba, whose mother was from Buxton and her father from Berbice, the Radixes are known in Grenada as being the first Black family to become professionals in the island. She sees her daughter’s mixed Black and Indian ancestry, as representing a true reflection of Guyana.
Imarah is already in South Africa where competition is in full swing and so far her version of Etta James’ “At Last”, made more popular recently by Beyonce, has been given a favourable nod by the judges and she has made it through three rounds of judging and may very well compete in the finals of the talent segment tomorrow night.
“I am very confident and proud of my performance so far. I have been pacing myself with all the various challenges that I have been faced with. I am taking part in all the fast-track competitions to maximize my experience and also my exposure and in turn Guyana’s exposure on the world stage,” Imarah told The Scene in a recent email interview.
The Oxford Brookes University graduate told The Scene that she is also confident of doing well in the Beauty with a Purpose charity project, the winner of which is announced on the night of the pageant. Imarah’s charitable work with children did not start when she became Miss Guyana World, but is something she has been doing for many years.
She upped the ante when she became queen, which saw her undertaking four projects in two months, and raised $174,000 which was used to feed 170 orphans and disadvantaged elderly persons. Her charitable work has also taken her into the Dharm Shala in Albouystown and for some time she has been working with the children at the Red Cross Convalescent Home in D’Urban Backlands.
But what really pulled at her heartstrings is the work she did with the Varqua Foundation which runs a free education programme at School of the Nations for children in Tiger Bay. Imarah, who has a degree in International Relations and Politics and one day hopes to work at a UN agency told The Scene that she was shocked at the illiteracy level of many of the children in the area and she has now pledged to dedicate her energies to hold English and dance classes for them.
Meanwhile, Imarah, who has deferred her place on a Master’s Degree course in International Relations and Diplomacy at the University College Kensington in London to represent Guyana, has already found out that the competition in South Africa is very challenging “not to mention fast paced.
“Everyday there is a new schedule planned full of surprises which keeps all of us on our toes. We have a very heavy security detail… 24/7. So far we have attended many charity galas and also participated in fashion shows wearing beautiful gold gowns by top South African designers. We have also had wonderful sightseeing tours in London, Abu Dhabi and the Eastern Cape here in South Africa. The Eastern Cape was beautiful. My group visited the Niguni Lodge on Safari and we saw huge herds of wild elephants, zebras, buffalo, baboons, velvet monkeys, warthogs and antelope.”
Imarah also said: “The competition is starting to heat up now because the preliminary competitions choosing the top twenty have begun with the sports final which took place at the lovely newly opened Nelson Mandela Stadium… “The things I have enjoyed most have been meeting all the other contestants and exchanging gifts with them; the sightseeing tours and the unique gifts I have received from the hosts in all the countries we have visited so far.
“I am having a wonderful time. There are many aspects of South Africa that are similar to Guyana, for example the Market Place made me feel like I never left Georgetown… It’s been a fantastic experience. I have made friends that will last a lifetime. I do miss my mother very much though and the home-cooked duck curry!”
While there are over 100 beauties vying for the crown Imarah said she is particular close to Miss Barbados, Leah Marville; Miss Bahamas, Joanna Brown, Miss Botswana, Sumaiyah Marope and Miss Austria, Anna Hammel.
In her biography for the pageant, Imarah, who spent some of her formative years in Grenada but returned to Guyana with her mother after her Grenadian father died, described herself as a “very outgoing and friendly person” who has a wide variety of interests outside her academic pursuits.
She loves reading and swimming and during her A-Levels in England as a teenager undertook the Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award where she learned navigational skills and the challenge of setting up camp outdoors. An ardent scuba diver, Imarah is a certified open water and advanced open water diver, a trained wreck diver, navigational diver, deep diver and a peak performance diver among others.
Her sense of adventure, she said, has seen her visiting countries such as Egypt, Margarita Island in Venezuela, Thailand, Nigeria and many European countries.
But it is not all water. Imarah has been in classical ballet training from the age of three and has also added ballroom, tap, jive, hip hop and Latin dances. She said that during her university year she choreographed a dance for the university’s Afro-Caribbean Society talent show.
Imarah has also hit the fashion stage many times modelling at the Guyana Fashion Weekend and appearing in GEM Magazine as well as on the cover of Extra. She has done photo shoots for GT&T and modelled for designers such as Michelle Cole and Olympia Small. She has also won a competition in England to be the face of a brand called Tigress Clothing.
Her ambition to work at a United Nations agency or an affiliated non-governmental organisation is fuelled by her interest in the treatment of children and their fundamental rights. She described herself as a passionate person in her values and morals, totally committed to fulfilling her dreams while contributing and playing her part to make this world a better place for future generations to enjoy.
Imarah feels strongly about issues such as racial discrimination, world poverty, social injustice, climate change and conservation of wildlife and the environment.
In an interview with the Miss World committee prior to journeying to South Africa, which is now on the Miss World website, she was asked ‘What would it mean to you to do well at Miss World?’ and she had this to say: “It would give me a great sense of fulfillment to do well at Miss World not just for my own personal satisfaction but also to make my family and country proud.
The Miss World pageant would be the platform from which I would be able to launch myself into the great challenge of changing the world for the better through raising awareness and support for both environmental and charitable work all over the world. I would dedicate myself to reaching out to the under-privileged in societies all over the world in order to make a real difference to people’s lives.
Doing well at Miss World would give me the opportunity to present to the world all that Guyana has to offer visitors, such as lush rainforests, majestic waterfalls and vast rivers. Guyana is renowned for its great variety of timber, gold, rum and sugar which are regarded as the best in the world. As an Ambassador I am inviting the other contestants as well as the wider world to discover Guyana through connecting with me during my time in South Africa.”
Asked who she admires most, Imarah said while her mother is her “rock” it would have to be President Barack Obama for his achievement in breaking down barriers and inspiring people of all races, cultures and ages to “get involved in the political movement and caring for the environment in an active way.”