ESO launches phase two of Namat Competition

Muscat – Environment Society of Oman (ESO) has launched the second phase of the Namat Competition for 2021-2022, supported by Veolia Oman and Emily’s Garden.

Previously known as the Green School Competition, the contest aims to encourage eco-friendly awareness and promote a conservation culture within schools across the sultanate by tasking students to come up with sustainable ideas to combat environmental issues.

ESO invites all government schools in Oman – grades 5 to 12 – to register. Registration is open until January 2, 2022, through the website https://eso-edu.com/green-school/gs-registration/?lang=ar.

“We are delighted to see how ESO has come forth to nurture a culture of sustainability in our students. The first phase of the competition had an incredible impact and the teams worked relentlessly to complete their projects, with nine schools from six different governorates ultimately taking the title,” said H E Dr Abdullah bin Khamis Ambusaidi, Undersecretary for Education in the Ministry of Education.

“We are excited to see all the new ideas they will come up for Phase 2.”

Seeking to contribute to the implementation of the goals set by the United Nations on education for sustainable development, the project is sponsored by Veolia Oman, a leading global and regional resource management firm, and Emily’s Garden, a memorial fund of the late Emily Jewitt, an environmental activist in Oman and the Netherlands.

“We chose to support this initiative mainly because of Emily’s passion for the environment. This is our way of giving back to Oman, her home for nearly six years,” said Juliet, Emily’s mother.  

Erwan Rouxel, CEO of Veolia Oman, said, “This partnership with ESO is our latest effort to support the education and engagement of youth on environmental issues and a marvellous step towards instilling a proactive attitude among the youth.”

Namat Competition encourages participating schools to form a team consisting of students and members from the faculty and parents’ council. Each team is required to identify an existing environmental threat within their school or community under one of the following themes: ‘Best School in Waste Management’, ‘Best School in Water Management’ or ‘Best School in Energy Management’.

The winners will be announced in June 2022. The winning schools will receive a cash prize of RO1,000 for the first place, RO300 for second, and RO150 for third.