Hendrick Fourie and Gideon De Jager of Western Cape were declared the 2011 South African Youth Water Prize (SAYWP) winners for their innovative Water Conservation: Windmill Operation project during the national finals event held on Friday, 3 June at Birchwood hotel, in Boksburg - Johannesburg.
The Grade 10 learners from Vredenburg High School in Saldanha Bay were competing against learners from eight other provinces. As the national winners, they will represent South Africa at the Stockholm Junior Water Prize (SJWP) in Stockholm, Sweden in August. In Stockholm they will compete against learners from 30 other countries at the event which is organised annually to celebrate World Water Week in Sweden.
KwaZulu-Natal which has been doing well and won the past two consecutive years came second in this year’s competition. Husna Moola, Palesa Maphosa and Richard James, all in Grade 11, carried an awareness project on keeping Amcor Wetlands clean and protected. It went so well that they were interviewed on an international radio station and had a joint awareness campaign with their local municipality. This augurs well for the awareness category as the competition has been mostly inundated by inventions lately.
In third position was the Grade 11 Free State learner Winston Mthabela who carried out a science research titled “A Golden Time Bomb: Mining Cyanide in our water resources.”
Among the audience at the event was Motebele Moshodi - the former SAYWP winner of 2005 who is now an employee of Department of Water Affairs (DWA) in the Head Office, Sibusiso Khoza who entered in 2007 and did not win but is currently sponsored by the department in his water-related studies, as well as “Sir” Stuart Nhlathi who entered the SAYWP competition when he was in high school. Nhlathi won the “Old Mutual Community of the Year” award in 2008 for the work he does with the youth through his Science and Technology Institute, which he established when he was 13 years old. He is a firm supporter of the SAYWP.
When delivering a word of encouragement, Moshodi said though it had been six years since he entered the competition “the needs of the water sector remains the same.” Moshodi, who thought encouraging the contestants who have reached the finals as a challenge nevertheless cheered them through the theme “The Power of dreams and Social consciousness.” He urged them, "you are exceptionally talented young people whom through your dreams the society can transform. Dreams are one of the few things that we as humans are born with, regardless of race or background. Dreams are a catalyst for social change.”
Commenting on the competition during the adjudication process, the judges noted that “there certainly are budding scientists in our schools; the passion that we see here is amazing. We have great thinkers who tackle serious threats to water sustainability.” The judges added, “With guidance and polishing of some aspects of their projects, some of the learners can be developed to make a difference in their communities and the water sector. Some of these inventions are excellent; showcasing engineers in the making.”
Judges specialising in their respective fields identified learners with potential and volunteered to coach and mentor or find them appropriate mentors. They also advised the department and other stakeholders to do likewise.
Learners in lower grades for whom it is the first time of entry, still have a chance to come back well groomed. To those who no longer qualify, Ms Nangamso Breakfast of Water Use Efficiency (WUE) advised that “they can enter Aqua Enduro, Young Water Scientists or other similar competitions.”
Among the projects that were showcased were those that address water pollution, saving water and preventing water wastage. The judges lauded some of the projects and noted that, “it is good to see learners coming up with innovative ideas.”
Breakfast also urged the finalists to use the competition as a platform to advance themselves educationally and the water sector. “Use the competition to network and find out about opportunities that are available in the department.”
SAYWP is part of the 2020 Vision programme that seeks to promote science and technology learning among high scholars from grades 9 to 11. It aims to encourage and empower youth to participate actively in integrated and community based water resource management. The competition also motivates youth to pursue water and sanitation management careers. Through the SAYWP, youths get the opportunity to interact with their peers, share knowledge and experiences related to water and the environment.
Through the competition, learners identify problems related to water in their schools or communities, do research and recommend solutions to those problems. It has the awareness and invention categories. Various prizes that the top three winners get include; bursaries from DWA for careers in the water sector, tickets to Stockholm in Sweden, subsistence allowances during the trip, cash prizes and computers or laptops.
The WUE unit runs workshops all over the country to schools that apply to participate in the SAYWP by assisting them how to go about the competition. There are initially provincial competitions whose winners go on to compete at the national competition. The winner(s) then participates in the international leg at Stockholm. The WUE team then links up the winning project with a relevant stakeholder to assist the learners with further development and implementation of the new innovation.
Source: Department of Water Affairs
Western Cape clinches South African Youth Water Prize (SAYWP) 2011
