Guyanese Assisting in Development (GUYAID) has contributed US$2,850 to the Ministry of Education to facilitate its annual essay writing competition, the Government Information Agency (GINA) reported.
This year, the ministry received 397 entries from students in primary and secondary schools in all the education districts.
According to GINA, students are required to write essays depicting their fishing experiences, under three specific categories – under 12, over 12 and over 14. This year’s selected topic intends to encourage more males to participate.
The cheque was presented by GUYAID’s Public Relations Officer/Chair of Special Projects Valda Forsythe to Acting Chief Education Officer- Secondary Melcita Bovell at her Brickdam office on Friday.
Bovell said the programme is sponsored every year by the organisation and the monetary contribution is utilised to purchase prizes for the award ceremony in Education Month.
Those students who are awarded 1st, 2nd and 3rd places are presented with book vouchers.
An additional monetary prize, which is a national prize, is awarded to those students who achieved 1st, 2nd and 3rd, places in the respective categories, and they are presented with $20,000, $15,000 and $10,000 respectively.
This competition, GINA added, encourages students to conduct relevant research in order to produce creative and unique essays about pertinent and current issues.
GUYAID has also been providing schools with supplies, sponsoring feeding programmes, books, computers, and water dispensers, which are intended to make life more comfortable at school.
Meanwhile, Forsythe indicated that the organisation had adopted Ithaca Primary School in Region Five since 1995, and has provided water dispensers, a video player, computers, and books. It is also facilitating a feeding programme at the Heavenly Light Church in Albouystown.
The group obtains funds through its Annual Mother’s Day event in Washington, DC, which sees a large gathering of Guyanese.
GUYAID initiated the essay writing competition in 1993, when members of the organisation identified the need to contribute to the development of education in Guyana, GINA concluded.
