Thursday, May 28, 2015

Millen Magese to be honored as first ever BET International Global Good Award recipient



 Last week’s BET Awards official nominees announcement revealed Millen Magese as the first person to be honored with the BET International Global Good Award. She will receive the award at the annual live ceremony held at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles on June 28, 2015.


Global Good is a BET International initiative highlighting the humanitarian efforts of global personalities and celebrities in communities around the world.

Although known mostly as a model, Millen’s award comes as recognition of her philanthropic and humanitarian work throughout Africa in the fields of health, education and girl/women issues. She has been advocating for schooling and healthcare in her native Tanzania, but collaborating with the government to build a school and improve education and skills amongst healthcare practitioners.
 One cause very close to her heart has been raising awareness about endometriosis, which she has suffered with since the age of 13. Her social media campaign #ManyFacesOfEndo has given rise to a wave of women standing up and speaking about their battles with the illness and the mismanagement of it by doctors. As the ambassador for Endometriosis Africa, Millen has undertaken to give the illness the attention it deserves and to advocate for the reduction in costs for treatment and fertility treatments, which so many women with endometriosis need.

The former Miss Tanzania has set social media alight since the announcement with expressions of pride and congratulations pouring in from all over the world. Africa has expressed a particularly passionate brand of pride for the achievement. Magese is the only African to be honored with the award while Africans from various countries are nominated for awards recognizing their work in entertainment on the night.

“I can not believe this. This is such a huge honor for me, but it is about more than me. This award represents the millions of women who have their lives controlled by endometriosis and other causes of infertility. It is for all their tears and pain spent in the emergency room with confusion and disappointment. This is for the young girls who don’t deserve to live with chronic pain. This is for the women who never got a chance to meet their babies due to endometriosis and infertility. Thank you to BET for hearing our voices,” says Magese.

The star-studded awards ceremony will see Hollywood come out to play and be honored for their achievements in music and entertainment.The show promises to be a feast for the eyes and will air at 8PM ET.
About

Millen Magese is a model and philanthropist from Geita, Tanzania. She was crowned Miss Tanzania in 2001 and has since become an international model working in South Africa, Europe, Asia and the United States. As a model, Magese is currently signed with Ford Models in New York, NY and Ice Model Management in Johannesburg, South Africa.  

She has been noted as Fashion Icon of the Year at Swahili Fashion Week (2014), The First Face of Delhi Fashion Week (2009) and Louis Vuitton Best Runway Model at Delhi Fashion Week (2009). Currently, she uses her modeling platform to make a difference in the health, education and girl/women empowerment sectors. Millen is the current ambassador for the Endometriosis Awareness Campaign in Africa and is building a school in her native Tanzania, which got her honored with the BET International Global Good Award in 2015.

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