Durban - The newly crowned Mrs Commonwealth 2017 is hoping to use her title to empower women in all aspects of life, be it at home, in the community, the workplace and business world.
The pageant was held at the Lyric Theatre in Gold Reef City recently.
Anneline Chetty, 46, pictured, of Centurion, Johannesburg, said she was ecstatic at her win.
She said while other pageants were about teaching women to walk in glass slippers, Mrs Commonwealth was aimed at shattering glass ceilings.
The former Chatsworth resident is the mother of 16-year-old twin boys and is the chief operations officer in the industrial development division of the Department of Trade and Industry.
Chetty said: “I am grateful to my grandmother, Ruth Chetty, who placed education above all else. She travelled to India several times to buy various goods, and upon her return sold the items at the local market. The money was used to pay for my education. Had it not been for her investment in my education, I may not have reached the levels I have.”
Chetty, who has a PhD in geography and environmental science, won the Standard Bank Top Woman in the Public Sector award in August and authored Promoting Entrepreneurship in South Africa.
In her spare time, she enjoys making jewellery.