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Zimbabwe’s Roseanna Hall continues efforts to secure a US visa from South Africa while the Miss Universe pageant proceeds in Puerto Rico without her. Hall had been due to depart on November 8 for pre-competition activities but found herself grounded by the restrictions that also affect multiple other African nations. “I have been in South Africa for the past week and officially today is the day I was supposed to be leaving for Puerto Rico for the 75th edition of Miss Universe but unfortunately due to the partial ban on Zimbabwe and other nations by the United States we have been back and forth trying to get my visa approved” Hall said in an Instagram video. She noted that she was not alone and expressed sympathy for fellow African contestants facing identical barriers.
The Miss Universe Zambia organisation withdrew its representative Pamela Mubanga citing the US travel policy as the direct cause. Mubanga a 25-year-old registered nurse who was crowned on October 8 had been scheduled to compete in the event whose final is set for November 24 in San Juan. The organisation stated that unlike cases involving personal documentation problems her exclusion resulted from the broader presidential restrictions and added that five other African countries were encountering similar difficulties.
Presidential Proclamation 10998 which entered into force on January 1 2026 suspends issuance of visitor student exchange and immigrant visas for nationals of 19 specified countries including Zimbabwe and Zambia according to the US Department of State. The proclamation was enacted over concerns regarding identity management information sharing and immigration screening in the listed nations. Applicants from those countries may still lodge applications and attend interviews but face likely ineligibility for approval or entry a US Department of State assessment found.
South Sudan’s Adut Deng the country’s first-ever Miss Universe delegate will also miss the competition after months of unsuccessful attempts to obtain required documentation TRT Afrika reported. Despite coordination with authorities in South Sudan Kenya France and the Miss Universe Organisation her travel could not be arranged before contestants began arriving in Puerto Rico on November 8. Deng encouraged young girls in her nation saying this is not the end for South Sudan in remarks carried by the outlet and noted that this was not her first such visa setback having withdrawn from another international pageant in 2023.
The 75th Miss Universe pageant opened with registration fittings and rehearsals in early November yet has already recorded several absences beyond the African visa cases Latin Times reported. Austria’s Victoria Amerson and Saint Martin’s Madly Marian withdrew for personal health reasons while six Southeast Asian countries are absent due to a separate dispute over national franchise licensing. Organisers have pressed ahead with the reduced lineup as the coronation at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum approaches.
Hall has voiced determination to continue pursuing her participation telling supporters she feels deeply for the affected African queens according to coverage by Briefly.co.za. The restrictions have spotlighted barriers for representatives from nations on the proclamation list which also encompasses Malawi Nigeria Tanzania Angola and Senegal per accounts from Punch Newspaper and other regional outlets. The US government has described the measures as necessary to safeguard national security through improved vetting procedures.
