The winners of the Commonwealth essay competition received their prizes from the Deputy Chief Minister yesterday afternoon.

A statement from the Government follows below:

Students were asked to submit an essay about what Gibraltar could learn from the Commonwealth and what the Commonwealth could learn from Gibraltar.

The essays were judged by retired headteachers Albert Danino and Ivan Navas.

The winners were:

• Lower Primary – Angelos Pantelidakis, St Paul’s School

• Upper Primary – Luca Trinidad, St Anne’s School

• Secondary – Amin Khabbat, Bayside School

• University – Haylee Pincho, University of Brighton

The Commonwealth is made up of 56 countries with a combined population of approximately 2.7 billion people. Over 60% of this population is aged 29 or under, which is why the organisation has a strong focus on young people. Gibraltar participates through the membership of the United Kingdom in some Commonwealth bodies and directly in others like the Commonwealth Games or the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.

The Deputy Chief Minister, who is the Minister with responsibility for developing relations with the Commonwealth, said that the Government was delighted with the standard of essays which had been submitted. He reminded the group that young people would this year represent Gibraltar at the Commonwealth Youth Parliament in New Zealand and the Commonwealth Youth Forum in Antigua and Barbuda as part of the ongoing engagement with the organisation.