13 Questions for Amina Kamara

It feels good to be queen. Just ask Amina Kamara, the first-ever Miss West Africa, who was crowned Saturday the 8th of November 2008 at the prestigious Conway Hall in London. The beautiful pageant representing Sierra Leone stole the show in a beautiful green dress by Keni Magma amongst 11 other great pageants from various countries. The beauty shed tears as her mother ran up to hug her in her victory walk.

African Vibes Online’s AV Reporter caught up with Amina Kamara shortly after her win with 13 Questions:

AVReporter: Now that you have won the crown, what are the first three things you would do as Miss West Africa?

The first thing has been done already; I had a celebration with my closest friends. So the next two things you should find me engaging in soon is working with sickle cell charities as this is a main concern of mine and touring West Africa which I’m very much looking forward to.

AVReporter: Have you ever been to Sierra Leone?

Yes, I visited Sierra Leone in 2003. It was amazing to see my family and my two sisters I had never met before.

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AVReporter: Have you encountered any issue with the fact that you are London born and raised?

Well, I’ve not come across that yet; everyone I’ve met has embraced me as Miss West Africa, which is a great symbol of growing unity within our people’s mentality. I’ve never personally experienced any negativity towards me because of my ethnicity. I always worked hard for what I want. When Obama won the elections, Africa celebrated, even more so, Kenya. No matter what ‘science’ the government or a passport may say, I am an African of Sierra Leone origin. For those that say I don’t deserve it, I can only say actions speak louder than words, and I can assure everyone that if they are of West African heritage they surely would appreciate my reign as Miss West Africa.

AVReporter: What are some of your aspirations?

I aspire to be one of the best beauty pageants ever. I don’t want people to look at me and simply say ‘Oh that was Miss West Africa 2008′. Also, I want to set standards for Miss West Africa; I want people to know this title is more than a few photoshoots and events. There are political and social conflicts between and within West African countries, as well as horrific poverty in many areas. I can not change this, but I wish to use my position to highlight it. I aspire to be someone who when you can look at and say she was a true hero and took full advantage to do the best she could as Miss West Africa and as an aspiring model.

AVReporter: How do you think the combination of brainpower and beauty is important in achieving your goals and aspirations?

I think this is very important. Beauty attracts a lot of attention. It is necessary to combine the two because young girls and generally everyone wants to be beautiful, being beautiful and an intelligent role model makes them aspire to the characteristics attached. Just as we see some celebrities before our time was the center of attention we aspired to their characters no matter how good or bad because we all wished we would be in their shoes someday.

I think it’s also important for the guys as well, seeing a beautiful smart female figure gives them something to look forward to when in search of that right partner. And most importantly people are naturally interested in beautiful people, they want to know more about them, being beautiful and intelligent allows you to raise issues they might never have cared for before you exposed it, so, beauty and brains actually are very important and that’s why most beauty pageants are attached to goodwill work.

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AVReporter: What are your words of wisdom:
Don’t underestimate anyone

AVReporter: How about your secret to success:
If I told, it wouldn’t be a secret, hehe

AVReporter: Fair enough. Who inspires you the most?
My Mum. She is a prime example of a strong woman who looks after her family.

AVReporter: What are some of your favorite beauty brands?
I mainly use beauty products such as Simple for exfoliation, Mac and Mary Kay products for makeup.

AVReporter: Your favorite all-time 3 movies:
Blood Diamonds (because it is based in my country Sierra Leone), Ironman, Love & Basketball

AVReporter: Your favorite all-time 3 books:
Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren, Screw it Lets Do It by Richard Branson, and Guaranteed Success by Percy Miller (Master P)

AVReporter: What is your sign (Zodiac)
Aquarius

AVReporter: What is your favorite dish from Sierra Leone?
No doubt, Cassava Leaf.