Bangladesh Stockholm junior water prize 2025 concludes

The Bangladesh Stockholm Junior Water Prize 2025 award ceremony, marking the conclusion of the 11th season of the national competition, was held on Tuesday at the Ascott Palace in Baridhara, Dhaka.
 
 The event began at 2:00 pm following the arrival of contestants and guests. His Excellency Nicolas Weeks, Ambassador of Sweden to Bangladesh, attended as the chief guest. Among the distinguished guests present were Dr Tanvir Ahmed, Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, BUET, and Regional Director for South and Southeast Asia, Global Sanitation Graduate School; Dr Rowshan Mamtaz, Professor, Department of Civil Engineering and Director, ITN-BUET; Azman Ahmed Chowdhury, Business Development and Quality Assurance, WaterAid Bangladesh; Samia Anwar Rafa, Officer – Technical, WaterAid Bangladesh; Mostafizur Rahman, Programme Officer, Embassy of Sweden; and Habiburahman Haziq, WASH Specialist, UNICEF Bangladesh. Safwat Ishraq and Tazkia Binte Talib hosted the programme.
 
 The ceremony featured speeches from the guests, with Ambassador Weeks commending the impressive potential displayed by the students and stating, "Everyone is contributing to shaping a better future, and all of them are winners." Professor Tanvir Ahmed praised the organisers' efforts, noting, "The Stockholm Junior Water Prize has a significant impact on addressing global water challenges."
 
 Since the competition's launch in October 2024, 152 nationwide teams from schools and colleges, comprising students aged 15–20, have registered to participate. Of these, 46 teams submitted project proposals. Six proposals were selected for the final round following a transparent evaluation process.
 
 Zabeer Zarif Akhter of St Joseph Higher Secondary School and College, representing the team Plasma Rider 2.0, was declared the Bangladesh Stockholm Junior Water Prize 2025 winner. This marks Zabeer's second victory in the competition. In his remarks, he pledged to work harder to bring pride to the country on the international stage. Additionally, Nowshin Sharmila Badhon was named Best Ambassador under the Student Ambassador Programme (SAP).
 
 The House of Volunteers Foundation Bangladesh, nominated by the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI), organised the competition, with WaterAid Bangladesh as the co-organiser. BUET-ITN was the strategic partner, while ESTex and The Business Standard were the technology and media partners.
 
 The Bangladesh Stockholm Junior Water Prize is a national platform to identify and promote young water scientists. The winning team will represent Bangladesh at the international Stockholm Junior Water Prize, hosted by SIWI in Sweden. The global winner receives a USD 15,000 award.