Art competition sees schools tackling issues around underage drinking

As part of our mission to tackle alcohol issues amongst the youth of South Africa, SAB ‘s You Decide campaign has been reaching out to schools around South Africa. They recently ran an art competition in which students explored issues around alcohol abuse, with impressive results.

The aim of the competition was to generate awareness around the issues related to alcohol abuse and underage drinking among the youth, and in doing so empower them to make the right decisions.

The competition took place in early 2014, with a total of 260 schools from the Eastern Cape, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga taking part. The results were inspiring: A total of 1703 entries were received in various artistic formats including drawings, paintings, poems, story books, creative writing, videos and even songs.

“We are so impressed with the participation and enthusiasm shown by these learners. The entries have shown mature and intelligent perceptions and understanding about alcohol and its abuse. Subject matters ranged from personal reflection to crime in society: not easy themes to portray successfully. We hope these talented ambassadors for our You Decide programme will share their insights with their peers and help put a stop to underage drinking.” said Jessica Yellin, SAB Corporate Reputation Manager and one of the competition judges.

Winners

After much deliberation, the top prizes were awarded:

• 1^st place: Tshepo Litsibane,  Grade 9 learner from Amohelang Intermediate School, Free State. Prize: R10, 000 each for Tshepo and his school.
• 2^nd  place: Cwayita Madala,  Grade 12 learner from Khulani Commercial School Eastern Cape. Prize: R6, 000 each for Cwayita and her school.
• 3^rd place: Molefe Mbele,  Grade 12 learner from Sasamala Secondary School KwaZulu-Natal. Prize: R4, 000 each for Molefe and his school.
• 4^th place: Bongani Mapaha,  Grade 9 learner from Amohelang Intermediate School, Free State.
• 5^th place: Lefa Tsoeu , Grade 9 learner from Amohelang Intermediate School Free State.

(Scroll down for photographs of the winning artworks)

Schools highly commended

These winning schools will each receive R5, 000:In each of the regions, our School Liason Officers had their top pick of the schools that they visited. The schools were judged on how helpful, accommodating, engaging, enthusiastic and receptive they were.

• Mpumalanga: Moses Mnisi Secondary School
• Free State: Mantshatlala Intermediate School
• KwaZulu-Natal: Savannah Park Secondary School
• Eastern Cape: Ndyebo Seccondary School

Judging

The judging of the entries was carried out by an experienced team from SAB, HDI Youth Marketeers,  the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) and the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA). <links>

•  Layla Jeevanantham: SAB,
• Jessica Yellin: SAB
• Jason Levin: HDI Youth Marketeers
• Nontsikelelo Makaula : NYDA•Lian Taljaard: SADAG
• Garreth Amoore: HDI Youth Marketeers

Prize handovers will take place at the winning schools during May. Congratulations once again to all those who entered!

SAB and underage drinking

Underage drinking is an undeniable issue in South African society, and SAB has various initiatives in place to tackle this, such as the You Decide campaign, the Responsible Trader Programme  and community workshops, among others. The schools outreach programme saw over 100 000 learners reached during its last year, with almost 500 000 learners reached since its inception in 2012.

To find out more about SAB’s alcohol responsibility initiatives, simply visit the “Alcohol Issues” section of this blog, or the SAB website.

The aim of the competition was to generate awareness around the issues related to alcohol abuse and underage drinking among the youth, and in doing so empower them to make the right decisions.

“We are so impressed with the participation and enthusiasm shown by these learners. The entries have shown mature and intelligent perceptions and understanding about alcohol and its abuse. Subject matters ranged from personal reflection to crime in society: not easy themes to portray successfully. We hope these talented ambassadors for our You Decide programme will share their insights with their peers and help put a stop to underage drinking.” said Jessica Yellin, SAB Corporate Reputation Manager and one of the competition judges.The competition took place in early 2014, with a total of 260 schools from the Eastern Cape, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga taking part. The results were inspiring: A total of 1703 entries were received in various artistic formats including drawings, paintings, poems, story books, creative writing, videos and even songs.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="626"] 1st Place_Tshepo Litsibane, [/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2211" align="aligncenter" width="626"] 2nd place Cwayita Madala[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2212" align="aligncenter" width="626"] 3rd Place Molefe Mbele[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2213" align="aligncenter" width="626"] 4th Place Bongani Mapaha[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2214" align="aligncenter" width="626"] 5th place Lefa Tsoeu[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2209" align="aligncenter" width="626"] The final round of entries on display at the judging event[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2207" align="aligncenter" width="626"] The You Decide team at the final judging event:
Nontsikelelo Makaula (NYDA), Layla Jeevanantham (SAB), Caryn Ravić (HDI Youth Marketeers), Garreth Amoore (HDI Youth Marketeers), Jason Levin (HDI Youth Marketeers), Jo Tsabalala (HDI Youth Marketeers), Lian Taljaard (SADAG), Biggy Matshoboza and Simon Chittenden (HDI Youth Marketeers) at the You Decide Judging Event held at HDI Youth Marketeers in Johannesburg[/caption]