South Africa’s Romanda Hombir has been crowned Miss World Africa 2026 at the 73rd Miss World grand finale.

The 27-year-old clinical audiologist, motivational speaker and model from Mpumalanga secured a place in the Top 6 at the event held in Nha Trang, Vietnam, on Saturday evening.

She scored the highest among African contestants, including Eritrea, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Hombir has made community health and youth empowerment central to her journey through her Beauty With a Purpose project, which seeks to make healthcare more accessible while helping young people gain education and practical skills.

Supporting communities

Her initiative builds on several years of community work, including health screenings, educational programmes and partnerships with local organisations supporting vulnerable communities.

Hombir’s achievement came as the Miss World competition celebrated its 75th anniversary with a spectacular seaside finale at 2 April Square.

The overall Miss World 2026 crown went to 24-year-old Joheirry Mola of the Dominican Republic, who became the second woman from the country to win the title.

Mola, an educator, journalist and community advocate, received the crown from Thailand’s Opal Suchata Chuangsri, the 72nd Miss World.

Elisabeth Reynés of Spain was named first runner-up, while Malaysia’s Taanusiya Chetty finished as second runner-up.

Mola’s victory came 44 years after Mariasela Álvarez became the first woman from the Dominican Republic to win the Miss World title in 1982.

The finale brought together 111 national beauty queens from around the world.