Africa-Press – Rwanda. Larry Labe Beatrice, a senior 6 student at St. Paul International School in Kigali won big on Wednesday, February 9, at the awarding ceremony of the second edition of the Wavumbuzi Entrepreneurship Challenge.
Surrounded by her school officials, parents, and fellow students, Larry was awarded a laptop, a modem, and an innovation tour as the top winner of the annual challenge.
In this edition, the gamified online entrepreneurship challenge attracted 6,613 high school students from 537 schools across all districts of the country, as well as 1,439 teachers who registered to support the students.
Sandrine Ikirezi Gasugi and Elie Ntakirutima from GSOB were both awarded at the top students in the Banking and Water Quests, respectively.
“The work of the Allan & Gill Gray Philanthropies in Africa is informed by a common vision for the continent, an empowered, prosperous and productively engaged African citizenry, thriving in ethical communities with dignity and hope,” said the CEO of the organation, Anthony Farr, during his opening remarks.
In her welcome remarks, Aline Kabanda, the Country Director of the Allan & Gill Gray Philanthropie reminded participants that the freely accessible annualchallenge seeks to nurture and develop entrepreneurial competencies and mindsets among secondary school students.
The Wavumbuzi awarding ceremony was attended by government officials, ecosystem leaders, Allan & Gill Gray Philanthropies staff members, and students and their teachers from across the country.
Speaking on behalf of fellow head teachers, Geoffrey Mutabazi, the superintendent of the Kigali Christian Schools commended Wavumbuzi for being a great complement to the existing national entrepreneurship curriculum.
“When students are at school, they need to get a portable repertoire of skills that they’re able to take with them after school. Wavumbuzi provides those skills,” said Mutabazi.
Larry Labe Beatrice, student at St. Paul International School and the overall winner of the 2nd edition of the Wavumbuzi Entrepreneurship Challenge.
The second edition of the challenge focused on four industry topics, also known as ‘Quests’ in the Wavumbuzi language, and they included; smart farming, water, banking, and healthcare with a focus on hospitals.
Reflecting on their six-week experience which started on October 25th, 2021, students spoke highly of the challenge.
“Farming was not something I thought about on a daily basis, but Wavumbuzi helped me change the mindset, and this award is an encouragement for me to learn more about smart farming,” testified Julien Mugisha, a student at Gisenyi Secondary School.
Mugisha is the winner of the top student award in the smarting farming quest.
His sentiments were echoed by Larry Labe Beatrice, the overall challenge winner, who also shared her wishes for Wavumbuzi to be known internationally so that more students could benefit from the challenge.
The winners’ categories included top student, top school, top teacher, and top student per quest awards.
The top school award went to GS Musango in Karongi District, while GS Rambura Filles’ teacher Thomas Ngizwenimana scooped the top teacher award.
Other winners included Prince Shema from Gahogo Adventist School, Elie Ntakirutimana and Sandrine Gasugi both from GSOB who won the top student per quest for healthcare, water, and baking, respectively.
The awards included laptops and tablets for students and teachers, smart TV sets and cash prizes for schools.
Spotlight on Nkombo students
Meanwhile, the virtual awarding ceremony shone a light on students from Groupe Scolaire St. Pierre Nkombo in Rusizi district.
After seeing that fossil fuels are some of the biggest air pollutants, the group made up of four students came up with a system that powers different types of engines with hydrogen gas as a replacement for fuel, and they have successfully been able to power different motorcycles including a motorbike from their own school.
Additionally, the group has also invented an ATM machine which uses SIM cards to withdraw money unlike those that use debit cards. Speaking on behalf of the team, Elie Gisubizo informed the audience that their invention aims at responding to the lack of ATM machines and limited availability of MTN and Airtel agents in rural areas.
In her keynote address, Paula Ingabire, Minister of ICT who was the Guest of Honor, expressed her appreciation of the partnership that the Ministry has established with Allan & Gill Gray Philanthropy to motivate and inspire young entrepreneurs in the school communities.
She acknowledged the awards ceremony as both a recognition to the top performers and an encouragement to all students who participated in the challenge.
“We hope that Wavumbuzi can be a programme through which our students are exposed to different challenges we are trying to fix within our society,” she shared.
What to expect in 2022
The Wavumbuzi Entrepreneurship Challenge aims to take place every year.
Sharing on what to expect in the upcoming third edition of the challenge slated for October this year, Kabanda promised an exclusive mentorship programme for the 2nd edition student winners, more quests to be offered that will expose students to many other industries, and inviting partners to be part of that process, and an improved user experience on the Wavumbuzi platform.
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