30 Ghanaian schoolchildren for UCMAS International Contest

Thirty schoolchildren from various schools across the country will represent Ghana at the 21st Universal Concept Mental Arithmetic System (UCMAS) International Competition in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

The children, who are from nine basic schools and 12 UCMAS centres will join about 3,000 other children from Europe, Asia, America, among other places, for the listening and calculation competition which will be held on November 11, 2016.

The contestants from Ghana were picked from the UCMAS national competition held at the Burma Camp in Accra. The participants will be solving 200 mathematical sums in eight minutes which is an amazing speed using abacus as well as their mental abilities.  

At a ceremony to introduce some of the contestants who will be embarking on the trip to Dubai, the Director of UCMAS Ghana, Mr Girish Gurgans, said over the years, Ghanaian children had been able to compete effectively with children from other parts of the world.

Last year, for instance, he said a Ghanaian child won the international contest held in Malaysia.

Apart from the competition, Mr Gurbani said Ghanaian children would be given the opportunity to interact with their counterparts from other countries and take part in some sight-seeing activities.  

“They will be competing in speed and accuracy which helps in their mental development,” Mr Gurbani added.

Winners at the international event will be presented with cash prizes and trophies. 

UCMAS is a unique and scientifically proven mental development programme designed for children to develop their mental power at a very early age when brain development is reaching its peak.