Press
In the news
Coverage of the 2026 competition, its new management and the season ahead.
The Citizen
Miss Tanzania journey begins with new chapter under Lamata
The 2026 competition was launched in Dar es Salaam on 10 September, drawing former and current titleholders including Beatrice Alex and Prisca Lyimo, designers, the entertainment industry and government officials. Leah Mwendamseke, known as Lamata, set out a season running across seven zones with auditions from September to November, twenty-one finalists, twenty-one days of leadership training, cultural excursions, media coaching and community service, and thirty-four broadcast episodes. The Lamata Foundation also committed TSh450 million to put 100 students from low-income families through four years of private secondary schooling. Tracy Nabukeera, the outgoing titleholder, said the pageant had reached the right hands.
Read on The Citizen (opens in a new tab)From the launch — 8 photographs 
The Guardian
Lamata named new organiser of Miss Tanzania
Leah Mwendamseke, the film actress known as Lamata, formally received the rights to run Miss Tanzania from Basila Mwanukuzi, who had organised the pageant since 2018. Speaking at the handover in Dar es Salaam, Lamata said the competition would return on a larger scale and that the winner would be signed to a three-year contract rather than one, with support across social, economic and leadership work. She credited the National Arts Council (BASATA) for its guidance through the transfer.
Read on The Guardian (opens in a new tab)
