ISLAMABAD:- Microsoft and Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission announced winners and runner ups of the jointly organized Imagine Cup 2023. The announcements were made during the closing ceremony held in HEC head office.
The event was attended by several Vice Chancellors, and Pakistan’s educational leaders as well as Director General Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), Dr. Salim M. Almalik, Chairman Higher Education Commission, Prof. Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed, and Microsoft Country Manager Jibran Jamshad.
Chief Guest at the event was Dr. Salim M. Almalik. Speaking at the event, he noted, “Such partnerships with companies like Microsoft empower the students to use their creativity in addressing real societal problems using modern technology”.
Microsoft announced winners in all four categories of Imagine Cup competition i.e., Earth, Lifestyle, Health, and Education. Winners at the event included team “Smart Fruity Bytes” in Earth category from Muhammad Nawaz Sharif University of Agriculture, Multan (MNSUAM), team “Journovolt” in Lifestyle category from Usman Institute of Technology Karachi, team “Human Life Saviour’s“ in Lifestyle category from FAST NUCES Lahore Campus and team “AR Learn” in Education category from University of Engineering & Technology (UET) Peshawar. Additionally, 9 more university teams from North, Center, South, and Baluchistan regions were declared Imagine cup regional winners and runners-ups.
The four winning teams also received cash prizes and will now be representing Pakistan on the international level competing with the world top finalist teams.
Addressing the guests and team, Mr. Jibran Jamshad, Country Education Lead, Microsoft Pakistan said, “Imagine Cup is one of the successful and empowering examples of how Microsoft is enabling students to build 21st century skill sets through access to latest technology, training and mentorship. As a result, students are offered new opportunities for the future.”
He added, “The Imagine Cup provides tech students, software developers and entrepreneurs new possibilities to innovate and solve some of the world’s biggest social environmental and health challenges. We have selected excellent local projects and now the champion team will compete in the World Finals Competition for a prize of $100,000, the Azure grant and a mentoring session with Microsoft CEO.
The top teams showcased their projects at the event and Vice Chancellors of the winning institutions and other universities discussed their experience of participating in the competition. Unanimously all participants agreed that Imagine Cup promoted a strong work ethic among students, allowed them to innovate and gain new skills and be awarded great prizes.
In closing remarks, the Chairman HEC, Prof. Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed said, “Microsoft and HEC continuously work to introduce tech reforms in the education sector. The Imagine Cup is one of the projects that both HEC and Microsoft are proud to have worked on. In the end these activities bring students together motivating them to contribute to the greater good of their country in an innovative way.”
Worth noting that Microsoft has already entered into an education transformation agreement with HEC covering key higher educational institutions in Pakistan. Under this agreement, Microsoft offers FREE certifications for 100,000 eligible students and organizes several capacity building programs and holds similar activities for the education stakeholders throughout Pakistan. The key objective remains empowering the education sector through technology and with the latest Microsoft products and services.
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