A former Kenyan athlete turned top model and one-time British designer Vivienne Westood lead model, Ajuma Nasanyana is the cover girl in the London based New African Woman’s (NAW) magazine in the October /November 2015 edition.
The award-winning bi-monthly magazine New African Woman is the only women's publication covering the entire African continent and its Diaspora. Founded in 2009 in UK with ReGina Jane Jere at the helm, NAW Provides in-depth coverage on a diverse range of issues that truly speak to and resonate with the modern African woman worldwide.
Ajuma who is appearing in the 33 edition which is already out and available digitally, is a fashion model born in Lodwar, Turkana County.
HOW AJUMA ROSE TO BECOME INTERNATIONAL SUPERMODEL
Born in Lodwar on August 16 1984, Ajuma was an athlete training with Paul Erang when she made her first foray into modeling, participating in the Miss Tourism Kenya competition in 2003.
Having won the 400 and 800 mt track events in the Kenya Junior Championships in 2002 she was now the crowd favorite in a very different type of competition. She won the ‘Miss Nairobi title.
On the threshold of pursuing an athletics career Lyndsey McIntyre of Surazuri Modeling Agency persuaded her to meet some journalists coming to Kenya to do a story on her search for a supermodel, they were Gamma Photo Agency.
They met at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport as Ajuma was about to board a plane to Sweden.
The journalists persuaded her to unload her bags and accompany them to Turkana with Lyndsey for a photo spread for French Magazine Gala.
The photographs taken were to provide the basis for Ajuma’s fabulous portfolio. They were so taken with Nasenyana that she became the main feature of the story, which later ran in France's Gala magazine.
Surazuri then sponsored the 19 year old to enter the Ford Models Supermodel of the World Search 2003 to represent Kenya. This is the worlds premier modeling competition with over 50 contestants taking part in a high profile show in New York.
Ajuma did her country proud by being the first black model ever to win a ($50,000) contract in an international competition that was not aimed solely at promoting black models.
In November 2003, Nasenyana traveled to Europe to build her portfolio prior to the supermodel finals in New York city.
Nasenyana participated in the New York Fashion Week (mind you this is one of the big four fashion weeks in the world) along side Naomi Campbell and Alek Wek for designers such as Baby Phat and Carlos Mieness before traveling to milan to model for fashion houses such as Ungaro during the Italian Fashion Week.
Paris was the final destination during the winter show season and Vivienne Westwood made her the lead model in her show.
Since then, Nasenyana has shot several magazine editorials, a video for Lacoste, and a catalogue for Issey Miyake.
Besides modeling, Nasenyana has decried the apparent trend in Kenya toward rejection of the indigenous Black African physical standards of beauty in favour of those of other communities.
In an interview with the Daily Nation, she stated that "it seems that the world is conspiring in preaching that there is something wrong with Kenyan ladies' kinky hair and dark skin."
" Their leaflets are all about skin lightening, and they seem to be doing good business in Kenya. It just shocks me. It's not OK for a Caucasian to tell us to lighten our skin. "
"I have never attempted to change my skin. I am natural. People in Europe and America love my dark skin. But here in Kenya, in my home country, some consider it not attractive."
In August 2005 she was voted amongst the worlds 10 most beautiful women by US magazine ‘Complex’.
She has starred in an art house movie that won an award at the New York Film Festival and has worked alongside Naomi Campbell and Alek Wek.
In 2006, she flew with the Victoria’s Secret angels including Gisele Bundchen to participate in a fashion show in Los Angeles for which she was paid a staggering $10,000.
In 2007 she was flown to South Africa to take part in the huge Positive Rocks concert and show in Sun City where she and Aluchi were the celebrity models for the event.
It was a tough decision to quit athletics but she is not one for regrets. She has adapted easily to the traveling although she admits it can get lonely.
However, her beautiful smile and genuine charm make her new friends wherever she goes - carrying the Kenyan flag with pride and grace.
Ajuma is highly intelligent, charming and ambitious and it is these qualities that make her such a successful model as well as her slim toned body and fantastic bone structure.
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