2009 Competition Results:
Citizenship in a democratic society
Entrepreneurship and leadership
Educational reform and employment
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The Center for International Private Enterprise is pleased to announce the winners of its 2009 International Youth Essay Competition. CIPE recieved over 660 total submissions from 106 countries in 2009, including from Afghanistan, Belarus, Egypt, Liberia, Uzbekistan, and Venezuela.
Winners were selected by panels of judges comprising CIPE’s partners from think tanks around the world, as well as CIPE staff. Placed essays will be published as Economic Reform Feature Service articles throughout 2009-10. |
Mouseover topics above for more information about this year's winners, and to view their essays.2009 Essay Competition Winners
Citizenship in a Democratic Society
1st Place: Piyumi Erandima Kapugeekiyana (Malaysia)
2nd Place: Rahel Weldeab (Eritrea)
3rd Place: Asamoah Prince (Ghana)
Honorable Mention: Tatenda Chiware (Zimbabwe)
Entrepreneurship and Leadership
1st Place: Saeed Mahmoud Jajah (Ghana)
2nd Place: Lochana Yasath Wijesinghe (Sri Lanka)
3rd Place: Julius Ankomah Agyemang (Ghana)
Honorable Mention: Yuliya Prysyazhnyuk (Ukraine)
Educational Reform and Employment
1st Place: Irina Alionte (Romania)
2nd Place: Carrie Kung (China)
3rd Place: Ujala Shanker (India)
Honorable Mention: Han Bo Shim (Republic of Korea)
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Citizenship in a democratic society
What needs to be done to develop a sense of citizenship in young people and help them realize
their role in a democratic society?
1st Place: Piyumi Erandima Kapugeekiyana (Malaysia)
Piyumi Erandima Kapugeekiyana is an Abu Dhabi-born Sri Lankan. She recently completed her undergraduate education in International Business Management at the University of Nottingham in Malaysia (UNIM). After graduation, she took up an offer to work as a Graduate Teaching Assistant at UNIM while pursuing a Ph.D. in a related discipline. Piyumi is fascinated by the ability of a good writer to somehow make sense of a complex world in a matter of sentences. She entered this competition in the hope that writing about identity, citizenship and democracy would bring her closer to decoding some aspects of that world.
2nd Place: Rahel Weldeab (Eritrea)
Rahel Weldeab received her Bachelor's Degree in Public Administration (minor: political science) at the University of Asmara. As an ardent believer in public service and volunteerism, she hopes to play a pivotal role in promoting peace and sustainable development in her region, particularly through youth participation. She entered this competition because she feels that there are valuable lessons from her country that other youth, especially those from the Horn of Africa, can learn and appreciate. Her interests include social activism, development, freelance writing, feminism, peace building, regional and international cooperation, and youth policy. Her hobbies include reading, writing, capoeira (Brazilian martial arts), listening to music, playing the guitar and singing while she does it too.
3rd Place: Asamoah Prince (Ghana)
Asamoah Prince is alumni of the prestigious Prempeh College and later studied psychology and sociology at the University of Ghana. He likes to read articles, publications, and books about famous personalities such as Martin Luther King Jr., Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Nelson Mandella, and Mahatma Ghandi. He entered the competition because he has always wanted a platform to address my colleagues in Ghana and Africa, and let them know that our personal and economic freedom are vital to our growth.
Honorable Mention: Tatenda Chiware (Zimbabwe)
Tatenda Chiware has interned with the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights for two years, during which he developed a strong passion for human rights. Presently Tatenda is a law student at the University of Zimbabwe. Tatenda is also the National Coordinator of the African Regional Youth Initiative (ARYI) in Zimbabwe. ARYI is a youth organization based in resource poor rural and urban communities in Zimbabwe which focuses on issues such as HIV/AIDS, Human rights, Skills Development, and Peer Education.
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Entrepreneurship and leadership
What needs to be done in your country to provide youth with the opportunity to become
entrepreneurs and/or leaders in their communities?
1st Place: Saeed Mahmoud Jajah (Ghana)
Mahmoud is in his final year as an undergraduate student at Central University in Accra, Ghana. He will finish with a B.S. in management studies, and hopes to have a career in consulting and writing. He has founded or co-founded five organizations in Ghana, among them the AVERT Youth Foundation, the Ayawaso East Youth Parliament, and the Fortune Investment Club.
2nd Place: Lochana Yasath Wijesinghe (Sri Lanka)
Lochana Wijesinghe has his Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a specialization in Marketing from the University of Colombo and holds professional memberships in accounting associations CIMA UK, ACCA UK, and CPA Australia. Upon completion of his degree Lochana began working at Unilever – Sri Lanka and was involved in Sales and Special Projects Finance. Since August 2009 he has taken over a role in Brand Finance at Unilever – Australia. In his free time he enjoys listening to oldies music, swimming, and engaging in community service projects.
3rd Place: Julius Ankomah Agyemang (Ghana)
Julius Ankomah Agyemang is from Sunyani, in the Brong Ahafo Region of Ghana. He is a recent graduate of the University of Cape Coast, where he received a Bachelor of Science in Tourism. His hobbies include travelling, researching, reading and is an avid table tennis player. Julius would like to further his education in the field of marketing management and plans to open his own business in the near future.
Honorable Mention: Yuliya Prysyazhnyuk (Ukraine)
Yulia received her bachelor's degree at LCC International University (Klaipeda,Lithuania) in May, 2009 in Business Administration. Currently, she is a student at Lund University in Sweden majoring in Finance. While in high school she participated in the Future Leaders Exchange Program which gave her an opportunity to visit the United States and develop leadership skills. I entered the contest because the issue of entrepreneurship in Ukraine is rarely discussed. Young and active entrepreneurs bring creativity, the development of new ideas, and progress. Yulia hopes to start her own business in Ukraine which she hopes to run with integrity and an eye towards community development.
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Educational Reform & Employment
How can you reform your country’s education system so that graduates have the necessary skills
for employment in the public and private sectors?
1st Place: Irina Alionte (Romania)
Irina is currently in her final year as an undergraduate student at the Academy of Economic Studies, in Bucharest, and will soon finish a degree Marketing. She also works as a Marketing Manager for the Shakespeare School, a successful private language center in Bucharest. She decided to take part in the competition because education is one of the most critical topics in Romanian society today, and also because she works in education herself. Irina hopes to pursue her master’s degree at a leading university in the UK and to manage and own her own company.
2nd Place: Carrie Kung (China)
Carrie was born in a small city in the south of China. She excelled in school and entered a university in Beijing. Carrie counts herself lucky enough to receive good education and have a well-paid job after her graduation. Throughout her time in China’s educational system she recognized that there are many students who don’t have access to a good education and end up in poverty. Carrie is concerned about education reform and hopes that everyone can benefit from education in China.
3rd Place: Ujala Shanker (India)
Ujala recently graduated with an degree in biotechnology from VIT University, Vallore (Tamil Nadu, India) and currently works as a Project Officer at the Centre for Social Entrepreneurship and Development at VIT University. The Centre is a new department that will convert students’ ideas into sustainable ventures with seed funding. Recently a project she was involved in received recognition from the Ashoka Foundation and the team was invited to MIT and Harvard to present their venture.
Honorable Mention: Han Bo Shim (Republic of Korea)
Han Bo Shim lived in Seoul until the graduation of middle school, and then moved to New Zealand in 2001. In 2005 Han was admitted to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and began studies in Economics. After freshman year, Han returned to Korea for military duty, temporarily leaving college in 2006 and served in the Rep. of Korean Air Force (ROKAF) as an USAF-ROKAF Air Traffic Control Coordinator for 27 months. Han returned to Illinois this fall to complete his studies.
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