AMAZING INNOVATIONS: Namagunga, Katwe Noor, Sheema Girls Shine at Stanbic National Schools’ Championship Grand Finale

Sani Troll, an innovative trolley-like machine with adjustable components to perform both indoor and outdoor cleaning, has won two students of St Joseph’s High School Namagunga a top prize in the just concluded 9th edition of the Stanbic National Schools Championship (NSC).

The designers, Elton Kigozi and Gordon Walugembe, both S4 students said their machine can mow, scrub and also mop at the same time. “It’s like a trolley in the supermarket and the ‘Sani’ comes from the word sanitation, because basically it is a cleaning machine.”

The NSC is the flagship activity under the Stanbic Bank’s Corporate Social Investments (CSI) aimed at driving youth empowerment and improved access to quality education. It equips teachers and students with the necessary skills and confidence to become the job creators of tomorrow, fostering a brighter future for themselves and their communities.

For this year’s edition, the number of schools applying for participation shot up to 265, more than double the figure in comparison to eight years when the NSC was first launched.

“Last week, we returned from Eastern Uganda trip that we had started in Fort Portal two weeks ago and we travelled as part of a nationwide tour of the schools that had emerged top in various categories. We went to visit the projects and to appraise them and we were blown away by what we saw,” explained Diana Ondoga, the CSI Manager at Stanbic Bank.

“More than a dozen projects drawn from all regions of Uganda faced off, in a grueling final that followed several months of a competitive process which attracted the participation of over 60,000 students representing over 100 schools in over 100 districts of Uganda.”

Fourteen schools made it to the grand finale held at Africana Hotel last week. According to the five-person judging panel, St Joseph’s High School emerged overall winners in the Student Spark category with their Sani-Troll business proposal.

The students went away with a solar system worth Shs20m for their school; their teacher/patron took home Shs1.5m while each student won a brand-new laptop.

Skool Bike Uganda – a running project offering affordable, reliable bicycle transport for students, reducing absenteeism and supporting consistent education – emerged top in the Alum Grow Category.

Sheema Girls School took the prize for the Teach Innovate Category with their Gamified Learning project. This project tackles low student morale and engagement by integrating game elements into the learning process, making education more engaging.

In the Student Grow category, the winner was Katwe Noor SS with their Library Simplified. Their Library Information Simplified platform enhances access to library resources, improving students’ research capabilities and learning experiences.

George Mutekanga, the Commissioner of Private Schools and Institutions at the Ministry of Education and Sports, was the guest of honour. “We want in a special way to thank Stanbic Bank for moving on this journey. As the Ministry of Education and Sports, we want to thank you very much for this 9th edition in a row and this year, I am most touched to note the issue of numbers of raised for participating schools,” said Mutekanga.

“Our concern as the Ministry, has and always will be because this is a National School Championship, can we come up with a strategy to bring on-board all the 2o sub regions of this country,” he said.

Also in attendance was Sam Mwogeza, the Stanbic Bank Executive Director. “In a program like this there’s only winners and I want to commend and thank each one of you who has reached this point. And not just for you, but for all those who participated but who are not here today,” said Mwogeza.

“I was moving around earlier and speaking to some of the students. The passion with which they share their ideas and the clarity of vision on the desired impact is exceptional. I can tell you that some of the marketing briefs I have had today are far better than any I’ve had in a long time. So well done again to all of you.”

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