By Abdi Ali
Published August 3, 2019
Pidgin English students in tertiary institutions across Africa have till August 30, 2019 to win US$500 in an essay-writing competition.
BBC News Pidgin, the organiser of the contest, says this second annual essay writing competition for Pidgin language speakers is open to all current students of a tertiary institution in Africa.
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“Entrants for the award must submit an essay of no more than 800 words looking at the theme, ‘Is Africa ready for female political leadership?’,” BBC News Pidgin says in a statement.
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Stressing that essays must adhere to Pidgin English structure and conform to rules of grammar and punctuation, BBC News Pidgin says the winner of the competition will be selected by a judges drawn from West Africa and made up of academics, Pidgin authors, and journalists.
The winner, who will receive a US$500 prize to cover the costs of academic books, will be announced at an event in the Nigerian commercial capital, Lagos, on September 20, 2019.
Contestants are requested to send their entries to bbcpidgin.essay@bbc.co.uk.
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Adejuwon Soyinka, Editor of BBC News Pidgin, says, “In its second edition, BBC Pidgin annual essay writing competition is gradually evolving into a veritable platform for the cultivation of young writers and thinkers in Pidgin, which is essentially the unofficial lingua franca of young people in the region.”
On her part, Oluwatoyosi Ogunseye, Head of World Service West Africa Languages, says, “It’s been an exciting year since the launch of BBC News Pidgin and this competition is a way to encourage the use of Pidgin language among our young audiences.”
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Further information on how to enter, including the full terms and conditions, are available at bbc.com/pidgin website.
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