Under the patronage of HE Dr. Mohammed Abdul Wahed Al Hammadi, Minister of Education and Higher Education, the 6th Edition of the Qatar e-Nature schools contest concluded with an award ceremony that was held yesterday at Wyndham West Bay Hotel.
Sasol, the international integrated chemicals and energy company, launched the 2019 schools contest in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and Friends of the Environment Centre (FEC) last November. During the contest, the Qatar e-Nature team visited many schools to promote awareness of Qatar’s rich natural environment and encourage schools to participate. Qualification rounds were held at Al Markhiyah Primary School for Girls during March.
The final round of the competition took place during the award ceremony, where the qualified teams competed to answer questions that tested their knowledge on Qatar’s nature and wildlife, all based on the information provided through the Qatar e-Nature mobile application.
Umm Salama Primary School for Girls school, emerging as the winner of the contest, was awarded gold medals and vouchers to the value of QAR 9,000 . In second place was Lebanese school, winning silver medals and vouchers for QAR 6,000. English Modern School – Al Wakra Campus came in third place, winning bronze medals and vouchers for QAR 4,500 while Al Shifaa Bint Abdul Rahman Al Ansaria School for Girls came in fourth, winning vouchers for QAR 3,000.
The ceremony was attended by representatives of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Sasol, FEC, and the media. Students’ families and teachers were also in attendance supporting the various teams.
Fatima Al Obaidli, Head of Programs and Activities at the Ministry of Education and Higher Education said: “We are very pleased to witness yet another success with this year’s Qatar e-Nature Schools Contest. This social initiative is not only a model of an effective partnership between the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Sasol and FEC, but also a testament to the very fruitful results of fusing education, technology, and a passion for our environment.”
Friends of the Environment Centre Director, Farhood Al Hajiri added: “The Qatar e-Nature Schools Contest serves an important message to all members of society- that caring for and learning about Qatar’s rich environment is a shared responsibility. We thank Sasol and the Ministry of Education and Higher Education for their efforts and cooperation in making the Qatar e-Nature Schools Contest a successful vehicle in conveying that message and instilling environmental awareness in our younger generations.”
Rigard Du Plessis, General Manager at Sasol in Qatar said, “We congratulate the winning teams of this year’s Qatar e-Nature Schools Contest and applaud all participating teams for their efforts. I am confident that these contests will continue to evolve and elevate our younger generations and their commitment to the environment to new heights. We thank everyone who contributed both to the success of this year’s contest and to building this social initiative over the past six years. We especially thank the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and the FEC for their efforts and cooperation.”
This year’s Qatar e-Nature school contest attracted a record of 339 students from 60 governmental schools and 53 private schools across Qatar, including both government and private schools.
The Qatar e-Nature mobile application, a corporate social responsibility initiative launched by Sasol in cooperation with FEC in 2013, is the first smartphone application and website that aims to educate the community about Qatar’s unique environment and nature including flora, birds, insects, mammals, reptiles, marine life and nature reserves. Its user-friendly interface, which is available in English and Arabic, has won four awards including two prestigious regional awards. The Qatar e-Nature app is available for download, free of charge, on Google Play Store, Apple Store, the Windows Phone Store and on their website www.enature.qa.