Car for differently-abled in contest

A car that helps differently-abled persons drive and a campaign to make better use of hotel leftovers are two of the Bahraini entries in a regional student contest aimed at bettering the lives of others.

Ripples of Happiness, now in its eighth edition, is run by InJAz Al Arab in co-operation with the Coca-Cola Foundation. It encourages social responsibility, entrepreneurial skills, financial literacy and workplace readiness and aims at inculcating ideas in young people that can benefit the society.

In total, 39 students from three Bahraini universities will compete against hundreds of their peers from the Middle East for a chance of winning up to $10,000 to finance their projects. The Bahrain teams -- Hand Race from the Royal University for Women, Let Us Change from Bahrain University and Save a Dish from Bahrain Polytechnic -- will each create a business plan for their project that will be assessed by an independent judging panel based on feasibility, sustainability and social impact.

Last year, a 14-student team from Bahrain University secured the first place in the Ripples of Happiness contest with their ‘Keep An Eye’ laser counter system to keep track of children on school buses. 

The device was inspired by the tragedy of Rashid Fadhel,  a five-year-old schoolboy, who died in September 2013 after being locked on a school bus in intense heat. InJAz Al Arab chief executive Akef Al Aqrabawi said that the contest helped create a “business-savvy generation of entrepreneurs who are conscious of the social challenges that face their own communities”.

“The programme has facilitated knowledge transfer to the next generation in a fun yet challenging environment that teaches students to operate their own projects in the future, while still receiving education,” he said.

Meanwhile, Coca-Cola Company Middle East communications and public affairs director Omar Bennis hailed the competition for its ability to “reach a larger segment of university students across the region.