Miss Lagos, Danielle Adewusi, has been crowned Miss Universe Nigeria 2026 after beating 19 other contestants at the grand finale held on Sunday, September 27, 2026, at the Balmoral Hall, Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos. She was crowned by the President of the Silverbird Group and National Director of Miss Universe Nigeria, Guy Murray-Bruce, after the final question and answer session, during which she spoke about using her platform to positively impact lives and promote meaningful change. She will now represent Nigeria at the 75th Miss Universe pageant, scheduled for November 24, 2026, at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Adewusi’s win comes 35 years after her mother, Tonia Okogbenin, won the crown in 1991. In an interview in August, she said she grew up with an appreciation for pageantry because of her mother, but that her early focus was on excelling in school and becoming a doctor, and that the idea of entering came while she was in medical school and reflecting on how to combine medicine with her interests in advocacy, modelling and public speaking. She studied Medicine at King’s College London, where she earned an MBBS and a first class BSc in Psychology, and she previously finished among the top five contestants at Miss Universe Great Britain 2023.
Her advocacy project, Scrub The Stigma, which she founded in 2023, focuses on women’s health education and advocacy in the United Kingdom and Nigeria, with initiatives such as Educate Lagos and Educate Edo giving young people information on menstrual health and wellbeing. She has also represented UN Women UK as a delegate to the Commission on the Status of Women. Adewusi is expected to take the project to the global stage, with the aim of breaking the stigma around women’s health and encouraging women to seek proper healthcare without shame or fear.
Miss Edo, Anita Osikweme Osikhena, was named first runner-up and also won the Best Advocacy Project award, which came with ₦500,000 and a one-year supply of Golden Penny products, as well as the Best Evening Gown award. Miss Cross River, Myya Jones, emerged second runner-up, Miss Ekiti, Oluwafunmibi Ajaja, finished third runner-up, and Miss Delta, Melissa Toghan, finished fourth runner-up and was crowned Miss Supranational Nigeria 2026, which means she will represent Nigeria at the Miss Supranational pageant in 2027. Twenty contestants competed for the crown.
