Nobody really knew Agbani Darego so well, months before she emerged as Miss World many years ago. She was just a regular model running her modelling work just like every normal Nigerian go about their daily jobs.
Agbani Darego was official crowned Miss World on the 16th November 2001. That was precisely 20 years ago.
The model took to her social media page some days ago to celebrate the success she achieved 20 years ago. This is a woman who rose from a nobody to become a chief in Lagos state.
Her story is no doubt a source of motivation for many Nigerian young girls. Instead of chasing rich men and having unnecessary sex, chase a big dream and everything will fall into place.
The young woman is a native of Abonnema in Rivers state but was born in Lagos.
She was the 6th of her parents’ eight children. Shortly after her birth, Darego and her family moved back to their home state, Rivers state. They stayed in Port Harcourt.
It was in Port Harcourt, Darego started her Nursery and Primary Education. Something happened during the time Darego was still in Primary school. Her mother had cancer, but her family kept quiet about it.
All those times Darego was just 10 years old. After her family discovered the sickness with Darego‘s mother, they realized the news might affect Darego.
To avoid this, they sent Darego to a boarding school to prevent her from knowing what was going on. Unfortunately, Darego’s mother died 2 years later.
Darego overcame the pain of losing her mother at a young age and pushed on. She attended Federal Government Girls’ College, Abuloma, where she completed her secondary education. She attended University of Port Harcourt, where she studied Computer Science and Mathematics.
Darego had always loved modeling right from her days in school, but her father really did not love the idea.
Darego auditioned for the M-Net Face of Africa modelling competition, but was not chosen as a finalist. This did not kill her passion for modeling.
Darego pushed on in her modeling career, some years later she found herself contesting for Miss Nigeria.
She won the title in 2001. She went further the same year to contest for Miss Universe. She did not win but was listed among the 10 semi-finalists. She finished seventh overall.
In November, the same year, Darego was crowned Miss World in the 51st edition of the competition that was held at Super Bowl of Sun city entertainment centre in Sun city, South Africa.
It is not a strange thing. When you are successful, people will want to associate with you. This was the case for Darego after she won Miss World Pageant.
Darego became a chief in Lagos, Nigeria after she won Miss World. She was awarded an honorary chieftaincy by the Council of Chiefs of Lagos.
At the time of her installation as a chief in Lagos, she was one of the youngest chiefs in the country.
Darego’s Marriage To Billionaire Son
Darego decided to start her own family in 2017. She married her long-time partner Ishaya Danjuma, son of billionaire General Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma, in a ceremony held in Marrakesh, Morroco.
The couples have a son who was born in September 2018, and they also welcomed another child in December 2020.
Darego‘s achievement as the first Nigerian to win Miss World is a legacy that still speaks volume today.
Darego rose from a nobody to become one of the most popular people in Nigeria.
