The organizers of the Miss Ivory Coast pageant have announced a sweeping new rule: contestants are no longer allowed to wear wigs, weaves, or hair extensions during the preliminary stages of the competition. The shift signals a deeper cultural reckoning with beauty standards that have long prioritized Western ideals over African authenticity.
For decades, Ivory Coast’s beauty scene—like many others across the globe—has leaned heavily on long, flowing artificial hairstyles as the gold standard on the runway. Pageant hopefuls have poured considerable money into not just glamorous gowns and heels, but often costly wigs and elaborate hair extensions. Natural looks were rare and often considered a disadvantage.
But 2025 marks a turning point. According to Victor Yapobi, president of the Miss Ivory Coast organizing committee, the time has come to redefine beauty through a more culturally grounded lens.
“We want to see their real selves—whether they wear braids, straighten their own hair, or just keep it short and natural. Beauty must be raw,” Yapobi said in a recent interview.
The new hair rule applies to all preliminary rounds held in 13 cities across Ivory Coast—and even includes international rounds for participants in the diaspora. The country now holds the distinction of being the only African nation to introduce such a restriction at the national level.
The push for authenticity isn’t entirely new. Ivory Coast’s pageant committee has long discouraged cosmetic surgery and skin bleaching among contestants. But this year’s changes go even further: the entry age limit has been raised from 25 to 28, height requirements slightly lowered, and the registration fee slashed by over 30%, bringing it down to a more accessible $50.
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“These young women were stretching their finances just to participate,” Yapobi explained. “We wanted to ease that pressure and put the spotlight back where it belongs—on their natural charm, their intelligence, their presence.”
The cultural impact of this shift is already being felt on the ground. During the first round of auditions held in Daloa, a city in western Ivory Coast, contestants expressed both excitement and relief.
One of them, 21-year-old real estate agent Emmanuella Dali, described the new rule as empowering.
“I used to feel less confident next to girls with long, artificial hair. They always looked so polished,” she said. “Now, I feel like I can walk in as I am—and that’s something that fills me with pride. As a woman, as an African woman, this is powerful.”
The move echoes a slow but growing global trend toward embracing natural hair and more inclusive beauty standards. In 2022, Marlène-Kany Kouassi made headlines by winning the Miss Ivory Coast crown while proudly wearing her short natural hair—only the second time in over sixty years that such a win had happened. Her triumph offered a glimpse of change, but this year’s reforms suggest the shift is now official policy.
And it’s not just in Ivory Coast. In 2023, Angélique Angarni-Filopon from Martinique stunned many by clinching the Miss France title at age 34, while wearing her short afro unapologetically. The resonance of these victories shows a broader appetite for change.
Still, Ivory Coast stands out for codifying these values into the fabric of its national pageant system—challenging outdated norms, one strand at a time.
