10 Mar 2025

Chedza Pansiri (43) from Serowe was crowned Miss Millennium 2025 in a glittering ceremony that concluded in the early hours of Sunday morning at the Millennium Jazz restaurant in Mogoditshane.
Pansiri, who became the 17th queen to wear the prestigious crown, beat fierce competition from Wame Leburu (40) of Serowe and One Ramotlaba (49) of Molepolole, who emerged second and first princesses respectively.
In an interview, Miss Millennium 2008 Felicity Bogatsu praised the pageant’s resilience and dedication to giving back to the community, adding that the reigning queen chooses a charitable project to support during her reign.
Miss Millennium founder Zenzele Hirschfeld echoed Bogatsu’s sentiments, highlighting the everlasting loyalty of sponsors as a testament to the pageant’s positive impact.
“We have been able to attract sponsors who see the value in what we do,” she said.
Hirschfeld went on to describe the diverse group of contestants for Miss Millennium 2025, noting that they hailed from different parts of the country including Kweneng and as far as Maun.
She emphasised the importance of empowering women, not just in beauty, but also in financial knowledge, which was the focus of the Financial Literacy brunch held prior to the grand finale.
“We want to equip our contestants with knowledge that goes beyond pageantry,” Hirschfeld stated.
She said  the key role of BotswanaPost, the main sponsor of Miss Millennium 2025, was promoting financial literacy and financial empowerment among the top contestants.
BotswanaPost, in collaboration with the pageant, provided the finalists with DigiPost mobile devices, allowing them to sell postal services without needing to visit a post office in person.
Hirschfeld said that the initiative is about, “creating empowered, confident women who can contribute to society in meaningful ways.”
The seasoned promoter also revealed that Miss Millennium 2025 was deliberately held during the month of International Women’s Day, underscoring the pageant’s commitment to joining the global community in celebrating women’s contributions to society.
“We wanted to align our event with this international recognition of women’s importance and achievements,” Hirschfeld explained, adding that “By doing so, we hope to elevate the visibility and importance of women in our country and beyond.”
This year’s edition saw 14 women vye for the coveted title, showcasing their talents and poise to impress a panel of esteemed judges.
The top four finalists were then asked a question related to the importance of International Women’s Day, with their responses playing a critical role in determining the winner.
One question that was asked to the finalists was:
 “Would you like to see International Women’s Day declared a holiday? Why or why not?” After deliberating on the finalists’ responses, the judges crowned Chedza Pansiri as Miss Millennium 2025.
Pansiri, who impressed the judges with her eloquence and passion, proposed that International Women’s Day be declared a holiday to celebrate the significance of women’s achievements, while also drawing attention to the ongoing struggle for gender equality. ENDS