UKRAINIAN PUPIL WINS TOP PRIZE IN DRAWING COMPETITION ORGANISED BY THE EUROPEAN UNION

The European Union announced today the results of its annual International Drawing Competition on gender equality with a Ukrainian pupil, Olga Chumachenko, winning one of the top prizes in the contest.

Olga, a nine-year old pupil from Khakhovka, was one of 14 winners of the competition which was launched this year on International Women’s Day, 8th March. In total, around 50,000 children from 61 countries submitted drawings in line with the competition topic “Once upon a time, there was a girl and a boy, together they wanted to make a better world…”. Participation from Ukraine was particularly impressive, with over 2,500 Ukrainian children taking part in the competition.

In Ukraine the Delegation of the European Union to Ukraine worked closely with the Ministry of Science and Education to select 10 finalists from Ukraine to enter the international competition. Drawings were selected based on their flair, creativity and originality in terms of style and message.

The 14 overall winners were selected by a jury of children from the European School in Brussels with each winner awarded a prize of €1,000 each to buy books, computers or other education materials. The winning drawings will be also showcased in an exhibition on 9th November 2010 at the Museum of Children in Brussels.

The competition has been running since 2007 and aims to mobilise and raise awareness of both children and adults around the issue of gender equality.

Photo gallery of drawings could be found at:
http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/what/gender/drawing-competition-2010_en.htm
For further information please contact Anastasiya Trotska, PR Manager, EU project “Women and children’s rights in Ukraine – communication component”, tel/fax: (+38 044) 278 3376, e-mail: pr@cwrights.com.ua