Leoshina Kariha

Miss Pacific now in Marshall Islands

The winner will represent the small island nation to the regional pageant in PNG in November this year.

This is the first time Marshall Islands will be represented at the Miss Pacific Islands Pageant.

A small PNG community in Marshall Islands was delighted to meet Kariha and arranged a welcome breakfast at the Marshall Islands Resort. The communality was led by Ludwig Kumoru and his wife Demiana of Siwai in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville (AROB).

Miss Pacific Islands visits Tonga

Miss Heilala this year has 24 contestants vying to represent Tonga to travel to PNG for the Miss Pacific Islands Pageant.

Kariha said: “I am here attending the Miss Heilala Pageant week in these ‘Friendly Islands’. This year's Heilala festival started on the 22nd of June and will end on 11th July. This will be a fun time in the Kingdom, lots of activities will be held to mark the King's birthday.

Miss Pacific Islands in Auckland

She is currently in Auckland, New Zealand, in her role as cultural and tourism ambassador for PNG as well as for the Pacific region.

Miss Kariha is part of PNG’s Tourism Promotion Authority’s (TPA) team and is accompanied by six tour operators to showcase PNG in one of the largest regional cultural expos organised by the South Pacific Tourism Office (SPTO) based in Fiji.

The Auckland show is one of the most important travel events for marketers wishing to reach consumers and travel agents.

Amazing journey for Miss PNG

Kariha and the other five contestants of the 2018 Miss Pacific Islands Pageant, accompanied by the current Miss Pacific Islands, paid a courtesy visit to the Prime Minister of Tonga, Akilisi Pōhiva, on Tuesday.

“I was especially honoured to meet the Prime Minister of our host country,” she said. "This has been a busy but an amazing journey for me so far!

“Judging begins today with the research topic presentation. I will be talking on empowerment of women. This is such an important topic not just for my country but on a broader scale for the Pacific region.