08 Apr 2025

Pageantry is but glitz and glamour to some. Not so to former Miss Global Botswana, Sakshi Bhargava. 

For her, it is the spark that ignited her journey into global advocacy.

From founding The Able Hearts Foundation at just 15 years to representing Botswana on the world stage, Bhargava’s story is one of purpose, passion and breaking barriers.

Born and raised in Francistown, her commitment to empowering marginalised women and girls started early.

Through Able Hearts, she has worked tirelessly to provide education, skills development and health support to vulnerable communities especially in rural where access to opportunities is limited.

Even in her pursuit of a Political Science degree in Canada, her work remains deeply rooted in Botswana. This year, that dedication paid off as she was selected to be part of a youth delegation by the Ontario Council for International Cooperation (OCIC), to attend the 69^th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69) at the United Nations headquarters in New York.

That to her was more than a personal achievement. It was a mission.

“I went there to ensure that the realities of girls and women in Botswana, especially in rural villages, were part of the global conversation on gender equality and empowerment,” she said.

For three days, she participated in high-level discussions on gender equity, women’s empowerment and education for girls, the very issues she has championed through Able Hearts.

One of her most meaningful encounters was with Dr Gladys Mokhawa, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Botswana to the United Nations, who welcomed and encouraged her to keep pushing forward.

“This was a full-circle moment for me,” she reflected.

As a young girl in Francistown, she recalled that she used to watch global conversations unfold and wonder if a voice like hers could ever be heard in those rooms.

“Now, I was not just there, I was speaking on behalf of the girls I work with,”she said

Her journey into advocacy started with an unexpected platform of pageantry.

“Able Hearts was actually born out of my pageantry journey,” she said.

“It was through those experiences that I first saw the harsh realities faced by marginalised communities in Botswana. That’s what pushed me to act.”

For too long, pageant girls have been boxed into stereotypes, but she is reshaping the narrative.

“We are proving that you can be intelligent, eloquent, compassionate, and beautiful at the same time,” she said

She said she noticed that she could stand in the UN General Assembly and still embraced every part of who they are including being a pageant girl.

As an Indian Motswana, representation in pageantry is also a personal mission for her.

“Being Motswana is not one-dimensional, we are diverse, we are multicultural, and that should be celebrated,”she said

Asked about what she could do if she ever take on a role in growing pageantry in Botswana, she said it would be to ensure that young women were uplifted, supported, and leave stronger, more empowered and ready to lead.

After CSW69, she said she felt even more determined to scale Able Hearts into something bigger.

She mentioned that she engaged with African organisations like FEMNET, FAWE and representatives from the African Union, finding new pathways to expand her impact.

“This is only the beginning,” she said.

“I want to see Able Hearts grow so that no girl in Botswana ever feels voiceless, unseen, or left behind.”

From Francistown to New York, from pageantry to policy-making, Bhargava is proving that a determined heart can open the biggest doors and that Botswana’s girls and women belong in every global conversation. ENDS