Photo: Eskom award winners under the Special Award category. From left Amra Marikkar from Ladybrand Academy, Georgia Loannides from Eunice Primary, Nicolas Hugo from Kagisho Comprehensive Secondary School, Hlehliso Simthembile and Kabelo Sekoere from Senakangwedi Secondary School.

The Central University of Technology, in collaboration with the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists, hosted an award ceremony on 05 August 2023 at the Boet Troskie Hall. The ceremony was to recognise all young scientists from the Free State Province who participated in the competition and applaud them for their ground-breaking innovative projects based on their own scientific research.

Participants were awarded in 13 different categories, namely Agricultural Science, Animal Science, Biomedical and Medical Science, Chemistry and Biochemistry, Computer Sciences and Software Development, Earth Sciences, Energy, Engineering, Environmental Studies, Mathematics, Plant Sciences, Physics, Astronomy and Space Sciences and Social Sciences. A total of 44 learners received bronze medals, 22 received silver and 17 received gold. Out of the 17 short-listed projects, only ten were selected to represent the province at the National Science Expo from 3-6 October 2023.

In his welcome speech Prof. Elisha Markus, Associate Professor and Acting Assistant Dean: Research, Innovation and Community Engagement, congratulated all participants on their outstanding innovative projects and for making it far in the competition. “We live in the age of technology where there is an overload of information which can be easily accessible to students and learners. As individuals, we need to explore these technologies to learn and re-learn to think out of the box and become entrepreneurs and job creators in the future.”

Paul Ntsinyi, Chief Technology Officer: JP4IR Solutions, expressed his gratitude to the parents for their support and for allowing their children to participate in competitions of this magnitude. He further encouraged young scientists to follow their hearts and not let anybody discourage them.

Photo: Gold medal winners at the Eskom Expo for young scientists proudly showing off their medals and certificates.

Hlehliso Simthembile and Kabelo Sekoere from Senakangwedi Secondary School displayed great excitement in their group achievement. They mentioned that the competition was not easy; changing their project three times required patience and hard work, but it was a great experience. “Nothing comes easy even the simplest ideas become challenging when trying to execute them, but it is not about winning; instead, learn from others and remain motivated”, said Kabelo.

Nicolas Hugo, a grade 10 learner from Kagisho Comprehensive Secondary School, said that he is excited and proud to have entered the competition because it taught him hard work, perseverance and thinking out of the box because most of the skills required from them were not part of their school curriculum.  He also added that his achievement had built self-confidence in him.

Amra Marikkar, a grade 5 learner from Ladybrand Academy, said, “I am really happy to be here today; I am also happy to be part of the competition. It has always been my dream to be part of the science expo. I am also grateful for the support from my family and friends; it means a lot to me. I want to encourage my peers to work hard, practice more and put more effort into all they do,” she said.