Aaya Muhammed crowned Little Miss Universe Uganda, Cindy’s daughter falls short

Aaya beat 42 other contestants to the crown at a thrilling final event held last Tuesday evening at the National Theatre in Kampala.

At the event, Denise Sekamate was crowned as the first runner-up while Etana Kemikazi was the second runner-up.

One of the contestants in this year’s pageant was Amani Brunetti, daughter of singer Cindy Sanyu, who performed well, especially in the online voting contest.

The judges of the night included former Miss Uganda Stella Nantumbwe, renowned dancer Valentino Kabenge, and actress Eleanor Nabwiso.

The race for this year’s crown started back in June with the nominations, which attracted girls aged between 3 to 12 years.

The Little Miss Universe Uganda was established in 2017, primarily to mentor and build young girls' confidence to use beauty and talents to empower fellow children.

Throughout this year’s pageant, the little ones were taken through a myriad of activities that included a boot camp where they received a lot of hands-on learning experiences.

For instance, through Pastor Susan Makula’s Church Girl Foundation, they were taught how to make reusable sanitary pads so they could teach others.

The girls also got to interface with different speakers and trainers including, Assistant Commissioner of Police Maurine Atuhaire, the Uganda Police’s head of the family and child protection department who took them through topics like safety and children's rights.

The annual beauty contest has, over the years, groomed little girls, training them in life skills, confidence, public speaking, personal care, and general knowledge in order to prepare them for bigger beauty pageants such as Miss Uganda.