Sunyani Senior High school defeated reigning champions Mfantsiman Girls in a keenly contested finale at the 2023 Cowbell National Independence Day Debate.

The competitive debate, opened to all senior high schools, is organized by the Ghana Education Service annually on a national scale and climaxed as part of activities to mark Independence Day anniversary celebrations within the country. 

This year’s final, which marked the 26th edition, saw contestants from both schools articulate fluently on the motion “Plastic - Enemy of Economic and Environmental Progress”.

Contestants supported their arguments for and against the motion with compelling statistics and research documents with the intent of convincing the adjudicators of the competition.

Addressing the gathering, Dairy Category Lead, Michael Hagan, expressed his excitement about the competition and patronage it has received from all schools over the years.

He further reiterated the commitment of the Cowbell brand to support the holistic development of the Ghanaian child.

“Our commitment towards the holistic development of the Ghanaian child remains an integral part of our operations which we believe can be achieved through education, a key contributing factor to our national development. It is therefore an honour to support and fully own such a strategic initiative in conjunction with the GES.”

Commenting on the motion for the debate, Human Resource Management Director for the Ghana Education Service, Ms Angela Frimpoma Nkansah said the debate topic, “Plastics-Enemy of Economic and Environmental Progress” is very appropriate because the conversation in the world today is about climate change and the effects it has on the global economy.

According to her, the effect of climate change in Ghana is very visible and as such school children should be educated on it.

Ms Nkansah also took the opportunity to announce the inclusion of similar subjects into the yet-to-be-out-doored senior high school curriculum with the right pedagogies to make the youth appreciate the fight against climate change and environmental degradation.

As part of this year’s competition, the audience was granted the opportunity to showcase their talent during the “Cowbell 60seconds of fame” through, poetry, public speaking, and music. 

The competition ended with Sunyani SHS adjudged ultimate winner with an average score of 74.33 against defending champion Mfantsiman Girls SHS who scored 74.16.

For winning the competition, each contestant from Sunyani SHS took home a cash prize, a laptop and assorted Cowbell products.

Their contenders, Mfantsiman Girls Senior High School were also presented with a cash prize, an Android tablet for all contesting students and assorted Cowbell products.

The event was attended by directors from the different units of the GES, Executives from Promasidor (producers of Cowbell), teaching staff from both competing schools and Senior High Schools from the Volta region as well as authorities of the Ho Technical university where the event was held.

The competition was followed by a sampling of Cowbell products for over 4,000 students of different senior high schools and revellers who thronged the Adaklu Sports Stadium to witness the March 6, national parade.