ExxonMobil, Kuwait Energy announce Kuwait Science Fair Competition winners

This is initially encompassing over 150 high schools from Kuwait's six different governorates, in an award ceremony held under the patronage of, and attended by, HE the Minister of Oil and Chairman of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) Sheikh Ahmed Al Abdullah.

The projects of the five-month long student competition were on display for the public at the Kuwait Scientific Center on March 27 and March 28.

Winners were chosen by a panel of five judges who toured the Kuwait Science Fair Exhibition on March 27, spending an equal 10 minutes on every project.

Kuwait Minister of Oil and Kuwait Petroleum Corporation Chairman HE Sheikh Ahmed Al Abdullah Al Sabah said, "We congratulate all the winners, and extend our support to the organizer and sponsors of the event, namely ExxonMobil and Kuwait Energy for their contribution and hard work. The competition's message is clear, we need to continue investing in our people and develop their skills, that is the only true investment out there. And we can't agree more."

Kuwait Science Fair spokesperson and ExxonMobil Public Affairs & Government Relations Advisor Ms. Aseel Al-Turkait said:

"It was a very close race, with so many well-researched and impressive projects the judges had a tough time agreeing on a winner, which definitely contributed to the excitement of the results announcement."

The competition was supported by ExxonMobil, Kuwait Energy Company, Kuwait Motor Sports Club, and the Kuwait Scientific Center, and is run by a committee of volunteers comprising the four organizations as well as volunteers from educational establishments.

Al-Turkait added, "The founding organization came together and created the Kuwait Science Fair competition to generate interest in math and science at an early stage in a student's education with the hopes of inspiring them to pursue higher education in these fields. From what we heard from teachers today, we believe we're on the right track."

ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Kuwait Limited President Dr. John Hoholick said, "We came together to create this competition to encourage students to take an active interest in math and science education and to motivate students to learn and perform well in school and to pursue careers that can be quite exciting and rewarding.

Hoholick added, "Study after study has shown that excellence in math and science is directly correlated to the ability of countries to successfully compete and prosper. And if individual countries and nations prosper, we as a humanity prosper."

"We at ExxonMobil are very proud to be a part of today's science and math competition and are very proud of, in our small way, encouraging Kuwait's next generation of science and math leaders," he stated.

Kuwait Energy Company Vice Chairman and CEO Ms. Sara Akbar said, "We saw today that students will excel when provided the right guidance coupled with motivation and placed in a slightly competitive, supervised environment. I am confident that by supporting more of these activities, today, we will be able to excite students into pursuing careers in math and science and in turn solve the recruitment challenges of tomorrow. Kuwait Energy is very proud of the students' accomplishments and is equally proud to be associated with this competition."

The Kuwait Science Fair was launched in October 2008 as a nation-wide high-school science competition. To generate support and attract student participation, ExxonMobil and the organizing committee have held workshops and introduction sessions in both public and private high schools across Kuwait, working with teachers and parents to inspire students to participate in the nationwide science fair. To qualify, students had to be between the ages of 14-18, and enrolled in a local high school.