WATCH: Miss SA Qhawekazi Mazaleni eager to ‘break the cycle of unemployment’ through literacy

Newly crowned Miss South Africa Qhawekazi Mazaleni remains focused on her goals to empower underserved communities through the help of literacy. 

Speaking to 947’s Thando Thabethe and Mzisi James, she says her campaign is about addressing the root problem of unemployment. 

“If we want to meaningfully break that cycle of unemployment, we need to start by addressing it at its root cause. 80% of our students in grade four are struggling to read for meaning, which means that those foundations for high school and tertiary studies aren’t there,” she says. 

“That’s why I want to start looking at literacy and making it more inclusive, alongside the policies in South Africa that are already in place.”

RELATED: 5 Things to know about Miss SA Winner Qhawekazi Mazaleni

Mazaleni says she was inspired by her sister, who finished in the top five of Miss SA 2023.

“For her, it was really a self-development kind of thing. She came out a completely different person than when she went in." 

Mazaleni adds that she does not want to change who she is. 

“I wanted it to be about enhancing certain features of myself that when I stand on that stage, I am not trying to grapple to become a Miss South Africa. It will be that I suddenly happened to be a Miss South Africa.” 

To listen to Mazaleni in conversation with 947’s Drive with Thando, use the video player below: