Quotes from Zozibini Tunzi

I didn't enter Miss S.A. because I thought I was the most beautiful woman in S.A., I entered because it's one of the few platforms that give women the ability to lead and I knew I had a powerful voice and message to send out.

I'm happy to see people being fearless and finally knowing that their voices mean something and that they stand for something.

If learners do not have a roof under which they can learn we are already setting them up for failure.

Being black has been put in such a negative light. For such a long time, being black has been criminalized, but being black is something that I should be proud of because we have so many black people who have accomplished so many amazing things in the world.

It was a question I got asked often from my friends when they heard I had entered Miss S.A. - 'will you get a weave?' I always said I haven't changed myself before so why should I now change for a competition?

I always knew I had to find a way to be a catalyst for positive change.

When you leave home, then you leave with the possibility of not returning.

I'm a daddy's girl.

We need to dismantle the systems that were built on racism, that were built on the backs of black people.

I knew that to live a fulfilling life I had to live a purposeful life; a life of service.

The platform Miss Universe has given me has exceeded my wildest expectations.

I want the men of our nation to stand and take a stand against gender based violence.

I think we are afraid to take up space. We are afraid to be amazing. As soon as that fear leaves us and we start building that confidence of being unapologetic about being great, then i think we can get into that space of having a lot of women leaders who are just fearless.

Women are not one-dimensional, we come in different shapes and sizes, and we are all equally beautiful.

I never realised how overwhelming it could be to be loved by people who don't even know you.

My grandmother probably never thought she would see a day where, you know, a young black woman would be seen as a leader, which is incredible.

Women are constantly being taught how to defend themselves against attack from men. I would like to shift the perception. I want to say that that responsibility should no longer rest on the shoulders of women alone.

Every time people ask me, 'Did you know that you would be Miss Universe?', my answer is, 'I didn't know that I would be Miss Universe because I didn't know it was possible for someone like me.'

I want children to look at me and see my face and I want them to see their faces reflected in mine.

You're not taught to be ambitious as a woman. And so when you are, sometimes you shy away from it or you're scared of voicing your opinions.

I grew up in a world where a woman who looks like me, with my kind of skin and my kind of hair, was never considered to be beautiful.

We're really taught to be followers from a very young age - men lead and women follow.

I think the most important thing... is leadership. It's something that has been lacking in young women and girls for a very long time, not because we don't want to but because of what society has labeled women to be. I think we are the most powerful beings in the world and that we should be given every opportunity.

I'm so grateful to have been able to go to the world and tell the story of South African women and South African children. As I stood there for Miss Universe, I spoke about leadership and I spoke about empowering young women and young boys as well.