Minister of Posts and Telecommunications of Cambodia, Chea Vandeth, presents the first prize to Ma Thi Bich Ngoc and Ngo Quoc Thu Anh from RMIT University Vietnam. (Photo: aseanfoundation.org)
Hanoi (VNA)𓆉 – Team Green Letter from Vietnam won the first prize at the ASEAN Data Science Explorers (ASEAN DSE) 2022 competition, jointly hosted by the ASEAN Foundation and its partner SAP.
Team Green Letter comprises Ma Thi Bich Ngoc and Ngo Quoc Thu Anh from RMIT University Vietnam. Their presentation focused on e-waste management.
The runner-up was Team Brunei Adventurer from Universiti Brunei Darussalam of Brunei, with a presentation on how fashion affects the environment.
The third prize went to Team 002 from Sunway University of Malaysia. Their presentation focused on sustainability in farming practices among smallholders.
Ngoc said she was very happy to win first place in the competition.
"As economic and finance students, data analytics is a field that is quite new to us. Winning this competition has given us an invaluable opportunity to explore and excel in a skill crucial for young people to thrive in the digital era," she said.
For Thu, Bich's teammate, participating in the event has been a very special experience for her. "It is truly a challenging but rewarding journey that has made us better young people."
The three teams were selected as winners by the judging committee for their excellent data-driven insights and solutions that highlighted six United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs), namely clean water and sanitation, affordable and clean energy, decent work and economic growth, sustainable cities and communities, responsible consumption and production, and climate action.
Frank Jattke, Team Leader of GIZ ASEAN in Cambodia, who was part of the judging committee, said he had a chance to see a lot of inspiring presentations from 20 young people from all ASEAN Member States.
"Their proposals had different depths and ideas with different levels of applicability. However, the most important thing is that they understood the problems and figured out the best solutions for them," Jattke said.
Throughout the three-day event, ASEAN Foundation and SAP organised a series of engaging activities for the regional finalists to build connections, strengthen their future-ready skills and grow their appreciation for being a citizens of ASEAN.
One of the activities was a learning visit to BookMeBus and UNDP Cambodia on the second day. The regional finals culminated with the storyboard presentations and winners' announcements on the final day, which were presided over by the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications of Cambodia, Chea Vandeth.
According to him, the ASEAN Data Science Explorers embodies ASEAN's commitment to preparing ASEAN students to be future-ready. This initiative plays an important role in igniting the students' creative minds and addressing common issues with innovative and sustainable solutions.
The competition aims to encourage innovation and creativity in the region and provide the necessary platform to promote data analytics, which is very much aligned with the ASEAN Digital Masterplan 2025, Vandeth said, adding that he believes this collaborative programme will build upon new generation skills on teamwork, interaction and communication as well as working in a highly demanding environment.
This is the third time Vietnamese students have secured the championship in the sixth edition of ASEAN DSE that has been held so far. Previously, the AWM team with two members, Vu Hoang Trung and Vu Manh Ha from RMIT University Vietnam, won first place at the ASEAN DSE 2019, and Team Catfish comprised of Phung Tran Dieu Hoa and Nguyen Truong Thinh, also from RMIT, were crowned at ASEAN DSE 2020.
☂ ASEAN DSE is a regional programme by the ASEAN Foundation and SAP that aims to catalyse activism and critical thinking among university students in ASEAN. Since its inception in 2017, the programme has equipped more than 43,800 youths and 2,600 educators with essential digital skills./.
