Students from Ghana and Zimbabwe have scooped the top prizes
at the fifth DStv Eutelsat Star Awards at a ceremony in Nairobi, Kenya, which
celebrates rising student interest in science and technology, reports ITRealms.
Organised by MultiChoice and Eutelsat, the DStv Eutelsat
Star Awards reached a record participation with nearly 2,000 entries from 18
countries, with the winner in the essay category, Ayawen Asuinura from Ghana
winning a trip to Paris and onwards to a launch site to witness a rocket blast
into space to place a satellite into orbit.
ITRealms gathered that this is the first win in the essay
category for Ghana that has already produced two winners in the poster
category.
Also, the runner-up in the essay category was Sara Eribo
from Equatorial Guinea who won a trip for two to visit MultiChoice facilities
and the South African National Space Agency near Johannesburg.
In the essay category, students were asked to interpret the
quote by Socrates “Man must rise above the Earth, to the top of the atmosphere
and beyond, for only thus will he fully understand the world in which he lives”
and to show how satellites help understand and take care of our planet.
Equally in the poster category, Zimbabwean Mallon Marume,
lifted the first prize for artistic creativity and will visit Eutelsat in Paris
to understand how satellites are operated and piloted in space and the many
ways they benefit users. Just as another Zimbabwean, Joseph Mahiya won top
prizes in the essay category last year, even as Ugandan Benjamin Ibanda was the
runner up in the same category.
The four winning schools attended by the overall award
winners and runners-up were also rewarded with a DStv installation, including
dish, TV set, PVR decoder and free access to the DStv Education Bouquet.
Paolo Nespoli, an ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut
chaired the jury of the Awards for the third year in a row, assisted by an
international panel of skilled industry experts: Ronke Bello, CEO at Innovative
Technology Literacy Services Ltd, Nigeria; Dr Jane Munga, Policy Advisor,
Kenyan Ministry of Information, Communication, Technology and Research, Kenya;
Dr Perkins Muredzi, Dean of School of Industrial Sciences and Technology,
Harare Institute of Technology (HIT), Zimbabwe; Melt Loubser, GM: Broadcast
Technology, MultiChoice Africa and Rodney Benn, Regional Director, Eutelsat.
Commenting on the entries, Paolo Nespoli said: “As the Jury
Chairman of the DStv Eutelsat Star Awards over the last three years, I confirm
that this year’s entries reaffirm the high standard of this unique competition.
The quality and creativity of the finalists’ essays and artwork underscore the
deep interest of Africa's young generation in science and technology. I am
truly honoured to be part of a competition that reveals some of Africa's future
thought leaders."
The keynote speaker was Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary in the
Ministry of ICT, Hon. Joe Mucheru who said: “It is important to note that His
Excellency President Uhuru Kenyatta and his government is determined to promote
holistic development of the country covering all sectors with particular focus
on leveraging science and technology in the delivery of services in all sectors
of the economy including ICT and education. Therefore, it is gratifying to note
the effort by both MultiChoice Africa and Eutelsat in ensuring that we nurture
interest and build capacities in science and technology.”
Uj N. Dominic/GEE
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