Great Debate competition opens

British High Commissioner announces launch of the competition

ISLAMABAD: The British High Commissioner Thomas Drew CMG announced the launch of the Great Debate competition at the British High Commission in Islamabad.

The Great Debate 2017 is the third annual edition of the competition that gives students from across Pakistan a platform to participate in debates, interact with other students from different universities and hone their skills in research, analytical thinking and public speaking.

The British High Commissioner Thomas Drew said: “We are delighted to present the third Great Debate competition. I am looking forward to seeing the top student debaters from across Pakistan engage in a healthy competition.

The Great Debate 2017 edition is an important part of our 70th Anniversary celebrations of UK-Pakistan relations and this year’s topics complement the theme of the Commonwealth Summit in 2018,” he said.

The winner of last year’s debate Taha Ahmed said: “The competition was an incredible experience to be a part of. The scholarship money eased the burden of my tuition. However, it was the relationships I built with the other competitors that were priceless.”

The Great Debate is a debating competition for university students. There will be seven semi-finals — in seven different cities (Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, Gujarat, Faisalabad and Mirpur) involving students from over 50 leading universities across Pakistan — and the winner and runner-up of each semi-final will compete in the final in Islamabad.

Winners and runner-ups from the semi-finals will be given one year British Council digital library memberships. The winner and runner-up of the overall competition will get a scholarship to contribute towards their tuition fees.

The first semi-final was held at the University of Gujrat where debaters competed for a place in the final. After a competitive round, Umer Waqas Ahmed and Mahum Shoaib were judged to be the winner and runner-up respectively.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 15^th, 2017.