Beauty with brains

has inspired many young people to pursue a career in tourism during her reign as the country’s top tourism ambassador.
The 21-year-old model, who is readying herself for the Miss Tourism Queen scheduled for China on November 9, said she is hopeful that her tourism campaign would give an impetus to domestic tourism.

“As you are aware I have been working with the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority and it’s been an amazing experience. One of the things that I’m proud of is that I managed to establish tourism clubs at schools in and around Harare.
“Basically, the clubs were aimed at making more people aware of the tourism products that Zimbabwe offers,” Rumbidzai said.
This, she said, was a result of the need to promote domestic tourism just like in China where three-quarters of the tourists are Chinese themselves.

 

“So the first thing to do is to tell Zimbabweans to appreciate our own tourism products. Surprisingly, not many people have been to Victoria Falls, Hwange or even the Great Zimbabwe and because of this my first port of call was to make young Zimbabweans to be proud of their heritage, culture and the beautiful tourist resorts the country has,” she said.
Through the clubs, Rumbidzai has also launched provincial centres whereby each province was tasked to identify tourism products in those areas that needed promotion.

“In Harare there are so many places of interest that many people are not are aware of and this was the thrust of my campaign,” the delectable Rumbidzai said.
She said Zimbabwe was blessed with a lot of natural resources, although its greatest pride was its people.
“Zimbabwe is amazingly endowed with natural resources as well as fabulous environment but the hospitality of its kind and warm people makes it a unique country.
“Our culture is unique and diverse but one of the challenges we have is how to keep our environment clean. When we have a clean environment it means that the country is friendly to tourists, investors and good for our image,” she said.

Rumbidzai, or simply Rumbi, finished her studies at the Women’s University in Africa in June and will be graduating with a BSc Honours degree in Sociology later this month.
However, she will miss the graduation ceremony since she will be in Xian province in China, representing Zimbabwe in the Miss Tourism Queen International pageant.
She leaves Harare for China on October 20.

Definitely not a newcomer to social work, she is a well-known television personality.
At the age of 16, she was already presenting a youth programme called Youth.Com and later at 18, she was the anchor of another television current affairs programme called “Viewpoint”, which discussed issues dealing with the youths.

On her reign, Rumbi said it has changed her life positively in that she has become assertive and eloquent when dealing with the people.
“Well, I was no stranger to dealing with people but when I was crowned the queen that added to what I already had. However, I’ve become more assertive, more eloquent and confident with myself and it has all been for the better,” she said.

On her preparations for the international pageant, Rumbi is being groomed by her former agency Zim Gossip Models while Shamaika were working on her portfolio as well as garments.
Zimbabwe’s prolific sculptor, Dominic Benhura, is also doing a piece, which she will present as a gift to the Miss Tourism Queen International finals.
“Generally, it has been a roller-coaster for me because besides attending to tourism business, I’m having to work out at the gym, practise catwalk, eat healthy and drink lots of water. However, I don’t have a specific diet,” she said.

Rumbi weighs 55kg, with a height of 1,70 metres, her waistline is 28 and a hip size of 94 inches. These qualities will make any contender green with envy as she has a perfect size for top models.
Already, youths see Rumbi as a role model as she is a beauty with brains.
She is grateful of the support she got from the ZTA who gave her the platform “to excel and grow” physically and business wise.

“It (ZTA) was a good ground for me to grow, it is like you are taught the protocol and they give you space to grow as well,” she said.
Rumbi, however, could not say who influenced her the most, saying there were a lot of people who give her the urge to do more.
“I have a couple who have helped me in every aspect of life. When it’s about business you find I have one influence, when it comes to education I have another influence and in modelling there are people who inspire me as well,” she explained.

Asked whether she will bring the crown to Zimbabwe, Rumbi was clear about her goals.
“I will make sure I will be a cut above the rest and do my best. I will not say that I’m going to bring the crown, NO! But I will make sure I perform my duty as a tourism ambassador and market Zimbabwe to the outside world and last but not least to have fun and relax,” she said.

Describing herself, Rumbi said she’s “bubbly, talkative and sociable.”