Hosted by the Eastern Mediterranean University (EMU) Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center (EMU-GIMER) and, organized with the contributions of Republic of Turkey Nicosia Embassy and Marvelous Pious Foundations (WAQFS), High School Entrepreneurship Competition was held on 19 March 2022, Saturday at 09:00 a.m. at the Rauf Raif Denktaş Culture and Congress Center. Attracting great attention of the TRNC High Schools, the competition ended with an award ceremony at 18:00 with the participation of the TRNC President Ersin Tatar. Contestants ranking the highest were presented certificate of achievement at the ceremony.
The ceremony commenced after a moment of silence and the national anthem. Stating that a total of 70 students from 11 different high schools participated during the competition, the Chair of EMU-GIMER Prof. Dr. Mustafa Tümer expressed that students devised their projects in the workshops which continued throughout the day. Thanking everyone who contributed to the process, Prof. Dr. Tümer referred to his belief on the seeds planted sprouting in the future. Drawing attention on improving entrepreneurship being an irrevocable part of economic policies of all countries, Prof. Dr. Tümer emphasized the importance of imbuing the society with entrepreneurship. Prof. Dr. Tümer underlined the necessity of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) supporting entrepreneurship in order to be among the advanced economies.
Expressing his pleasure in hosting such an important event within the roof of our university, EMU Rector Prof. Dr. Aykut Hocanın congratulated everyone who participated during the process. Stating that, many projects being devised in various different fields of study within the scope of the event, Prof. Dr. Hocanın noted his belief on projects developing and transforming into applications and patents in the future. Providing information regarding EMU, Prof. Dr. Hocanın emphasized that EMU is within the 501-600 band of the worldwide rankings by Times Higher Education (THE), while it is ranked 153rd in the world in the young universities rankings. Prof. Dr. Hocanın added that EMU is keeping its goals up in order to be the best not only in TRNC but also throughout the island, Turkey and the world.
TRNC Minister of Labor and Social Security Hasan Taçoy also delivered a speech where he started thanking EMU for creating such an opportunity for the youngsters. Underlining the importance of bringing high schoolers from different schools together with the intention of conducting projects, Taçoy emphasized the significance of being self-confident during the projects.
President Ersin Tatar also delivered a speech and said he believed that important projects would emerge within the scope of the competition and emphasized that the projects would encourage us all. Drawing attention to the fact that TRNC is a part of the world, Tatar said; “Our youth has all kind of visions. We have international achievements. Nobody can stand in front of us. We trust in our youth. We are their supporters and wish the continuation of successful projects.
Following the opening speeches, educators and jury members who participated in the workshops were presented with certificates. Achievement certificates of top three participants were presented by President Tatar, TRNC Minister of Labor and Social Security Hasan Taçoy, EMU Board of Trustees President Dr. Erdal Özcenk, EMU Rector Prof. Dr. Aykut Hocanın and GIMER Chair Prof. Dr. Tümer, respectively.
In collaboration with the Small and Medium Scale Enterprises Development Organization (KOSGEB), the top 3 teams of the competition will travel to Konya in Turkey for a 5-day trip to visit successful entrepreneurs. Moreover, KOSGEB headquarters and Technopark facilities in Ankara will also be visited during the trip.
