Kpando Senior High School has emerged as the winner of the 2024 Volta Regional Energy Commission’s Senior High School Renewable Energy Challenge.
The challenge, which aims to promote energy research and development among senior high school students, saw Kpando Senior High outperform five other schools in the region, scoring 72.5 points to claim victory.
The Energy Commission’s Renewable Energy Challenge seeks to foster innovation in renewable energy and facilitate mentorship programs to help students develop their ideas into viable, game-changing solutions. This year’s challenge is themed “Application of Renewable Energy Technologies in Solving Land Degradation and Water Pollution.”
Six senior high schools participated in the 2024 Volta regional edition: Tsito Senior High Technical School, Kpedze SHS, Ola SHS, Sogakope SHS, Kpando SHS, and Anlo Senior High School.
The Volta Regional Director of Education, Mr. Francis Agbemadi, stated that this year’s theme highlights the crucial role of renewable energy technologies in addressing environmental issues such as land degradation and water pollution. He expressed his inspiration at seeing students actively engaged in research and innovation and affirmed the directorate’s commitment to supporting these efforts through mentorship and development programs.
“The theme for this year’s challenge, ‘Application of Renewable Energy Technologies in Solving Land Degradation and Water Pollution,’ is both timely and essential. In an era marked by the acceleration of harmful human activities such as illegal mining, indiscriminate waste disposal, unapproved fishing methods, burning of plastic waste, and sand weaning, the urgency for sustainable solutions has never been greater,” Mr. Agbemadi noted.
The Director in charge of Finance at the Energy Commission, Mr. Gilbert Hammond, said the Renewable Energy Challenge fosters innovation among students and aligns with the commission’s goal of sustainable energy development. He noted that the commission would continue to support the initiative, encouraging young minds to develop practical solutions to address environmental issues.
“The challenge was born out of the Commission’s mandate under the Renewable Energy Act of 2011, Act 832, which seeks to promote the development and efficient use of renewable energy through public education, training, and regulation of entrepreneurship in the sector. It also aims to facilitate the mainstreaming of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies and programs into the curriculum of educational and training institutions,” Mr. Hammond remarked.
Tsito SHTS built and presented a water purification system using solar energy, while Kpedze SHS presented on a gasifier that turns plastic waste into clean energy for a cleaner community. Ola SHS presented a renewable drainage system to turn floodwaters into electricity, and Sogakope SHS built and presented a sanitation amphibian that collects waste materials from both land and water.
Kpando SHS’s presentation focused on an aqua waste collector to gather waste materials from water bodies and use them to produce building and furniture products. Anlo SHS presented on controlled gasification and deionization to control water pollution and land degradation.
At the end of the challenge, Kpando Senior High emerged as the winner with 72.5 points, with Sogakope and Ola claiming the 2nd and 3rd spots with 68.8 and 58 points, respectively. Former regional and national champions Kpedze SHS placed 4th with 57.8 points, Anlo SHS came 5th with 57.6 points, and Tsito SHTS obtained the 6th position with 56 points.
By their victory, Kpando Senior High School has dethroned Kpedze SHS, the regional champion in the 3rd edition, and Sogakope SHS, the current national champion in the 4th edition at the regional level, and will represent the region at the national event. They await the other regional champions to compete in the national challenge later in the year.
Certificates of participation were presented to the students and teachers of the participating schools.
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