Abena Nkansah Oteng-Abayie, a first-year student in the Department of Chemical engineering has emerged as a Bronze medalist at the 2023 Commonwealth Essay Competition. She was the second runner-up out of a total of 34, 924 students from 50 African countries.
This year’s Essay Competition was categorized into age groups, “14 – 18” and “under 14 ”. Participants were to select one out of the following four topics to develop their essays:
1. As Head of the Commonwealth, His Majesty The King is opening an international conference on the importance of young people in decision making. Write his speech.
2. Does age matter?
3. The 2023 Year of Youth was a moment of significant social change - what was its impact on the world?
4. Script a dialogue between two people, with contrasting viewpoints, on an issue that divides generations.
Abena chose to write on the topic “Does Age Matter?” She said she selected this topic because it gave her a wider scope to write. She wrote about her own experiences surrounding the chosen topic. The writing is an interesting read that gives her views on some aspects of life from the perspective of a young Ghanaian lady.
To mark the 50th Anniversary of the Commonwealth Youth Programme, Commonwealth Heads of Government declared 2023 a year dedicated to youth-led action for sustainable and inclusive development and called on a renewal and strengthening of their commitment to youth engagement and empowerment.
Focus of this Anniversary celebration is on the Commonwealth’s population of almost 2.5 billion people, of which 60% are under the age of 30. This young demographic represents a dynamic ‘youth force for change’, made up of exceptional young people who are increasingly involved in advocacy, decision-making and action. This energy that translates into youth power can be used to make a meaningful impact in the world.
The College of Engineering would like to congratulate Abena for this achievement.
