2025 TripleS Masters Encounter Challenge: Artaldus, Desiree emerge winners from Tilapia, and Coconut Zone
2025 TripleS Masters Encounter Challenge: Artaldus, Desiree emerge winners from Tilapia, and Coconut Zone
A 13-year-old basic 8 pupil of the Accra College of Education Demonstration School, Artaldus Sung Kuuntanaa, and a 13-year-old Basic 8 pupil of the Asante Gold Bibiani Limited Basic School (AGBL) in the Bibiani Ahwiaso Bekwai Municipality in the Western North Region, Desiree Ohemaa Amponsah Duah, have emerged winners of the 2025 edition of the School Sanitation Solution Challenge’s (Triple S) first Masters Encounter from the Tilapia and Coconut Zones, respectively.
Artaldus polled 242 points, representing 80.6 per cent, to beat four other competitors in the Tilapia Zone, while Desiree had 259 points, representing 86.3 per cent, to emerge ahead of four others in the Coconut Zone.
The Tilapia Zone comprised contenders from five basic schools from the Greater Accra, Oti, and the Volta regions, while the Coconut Zone was made up of basic schools from the Central, Western, and Western North regions.
For the Tilapia Zone, Jenelle-Abrielle Ofori, a 13-year-old Basic 8 pupil of the Silicon Valley International School in the Ga North Municipality, had 208 points to emerge first runner-up, while Nyameye Asamoah-Owusu, a 13-year-old Basic 8 pupil from the Achimota Basic School, took the third position with 195 points.
The fourth and fifth positions were won by Norviwonyo Queen-Irish and Ivan Amengor, who polled 157 and 137 points respectively.
For the Coconut Zone, Bernice Amoquando gained 212 points to emerge as the first runner-up, while the third and fourth positions were won by Kakra Bless Yankey and Innocent Adu, who had 200 and 195 points, respectively. Patience Aggrey polled 174 points to occupy the fifth position.
The pupils, posing a Chief Executive Officers of Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in areas where their schools were located, defended their essay topics on how they could co-create sustainable solutions and advocate improved sanitation in schools, communities, and public spaces.
The competition, aimed at unearthing the creative potential of children from the basic school level to address Ghana’s sanitation challenges, was organised by World Vision Ghana and its partners to promote child participation in Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) programming.
Speaking to the media after the competition, the WASH Technical Specialist at World Vision Ghana, Mr. Yaw Atta Arhin, described the level of knowledge the contenders displayed as “exciting and heartwarming”.
“The level of knowledge shared by these pupils tells us that if we continue to mentor them and continue to build their capacity, they should be able to support us to co-create sustainable solutions to the sanitation challenges around us and take Ghana out of our poor sanitation situation,” he said.
Mr. Atta Arhin, explaining the rationale for the Triple S competition, said it was World Vision’s dream to ensure that every child enjoyed their full potential while growing up.
According to him, no child could have a fullness of life if they were faced with poor sanitation, which could affect their well-being.
“We identified diseases, unnecessary deaths, and others as one of the major challenges that children in Ghana are facing, and we determined that if we want to succeed in eradicating poor sanitation, then we have to engage our children, who are major stakeholders, and it has paid off,” he reiterated.
