Addressing the gathering at the launch, Mrs. Nana Akua Ankomah-Asare, Managing Director of Primetime Ghana Limited, producers of the competition, said the 23rd edition of the quiz promises to be thrilling as the competition marks its 25th anniversary.
According to her, the flagship quiz competition will be complemented by Science Festival which comprises four satellite events- Mentorship Sessions, Sci-Tech Fair, Picnic and Tours.
Mrs. Ankomah-Asare further implored the students to fully participate in all the activities and programmes that are tailor-made for them in unearthing their inborn potentials.
“Our Sci-Tech Fair is unique in the sense that it is not only an exhibition but an opportunity for participants to go in there to conduct simple experiments under supervision.” she said.
The Managing Director of Primetime also indicated that competing schools in this year’s competition will have an opportunity to substitute their contestants by the end of the third round, that is, the Problem of the Day.
“The team is always made up of three contestants. This year, the third contestant has the chance to help his or her school win the contest. We have introduced a substitution system except that the substitution must be done by the end of ‘Problem of the Day’ and can only be done once in a single contest,” she added.
Mrs. Nana Akua Ankomah-Asare further acknowledged the immense support from the sponsors and called on all individuals in rallying their support behind the subsequent events.
Delivering an address on behalf of the National President of the Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary Schools (CHASS), Dr. Shine Ofori, National Treasurer, renewed CHASS’ commitment to supporting the National Science & Maths Quiz. She said Science and Maths Education continues to play a pivotal role in the rapid socio-economic and industrial development of nations.
Dr. Ofori also made a special appeal to the Minister of Education and the Ghana Education Service to consider rehabilitating and refurbishing science laboratories across the country to promote effective teaching and learning of the sciences.
On the part of the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI), Ms. Adelaide Asante, Director of Science, Technology and Innovation said her outfit considers NSMQ as one of the effective strategic programmes in helping develop Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) capabilities as a country.
She also pledged her Ministry’s support for the National Science & Maths Quiz as the competition continues to whip up the interest of Ghanaians in Science and Mathematics.
Officially performing the launch of the 2018 edition of the National Science & Maths Quiz and Science festival, Ms. Catherine Appiah-Pinkrah, Director, Pre-tertiary at the Ministry of Education said a nation’s development is accelerated and sustained through improved infrastructure, technology, better medical care and research.
It is against this backdrop that she said the Ministry of Education will not relent on it efforts in providing an enabling environment for the teaching and learning of Science and Mathematics at all levels of education in Ghana.
“As a nation, we owe it as a duty that our youth are encouraged in every way possible to develop these talents from the early age. The students are the major resource the nation has to harness for a meaningful socio-economic development,” Ms. Appiah-Pinkrah said.
Ms. Catherine Appiah-Pinkrah, on behalf of the Minister of Education, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh officially launched the 2018 edition of the National Science & Maths Quiz and Science festival and wished all competing schools well.
The Mentorship Sessions, which are sponsored by BOND Savings & Loans and RMG Ghana Ltd, would start from June 12, 2018 and continue each day of the Science Festival at 9am. The second edition of the Sci-Tech Fair, sponsored by GOIL, Prudential Life Insurance Ghana and Tullow Oil, is slated for Friday, June 8 and Saturday, June 9, 2018 at the Athletics Oval, University of Ghana, Legon.
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