Olubunmi Agusto of Day Waterman College, Abeokuta, Ogun State set a new record as the first African to emerge among the top three in the Certiport Worldwide competition on Microsoft Office.
The competition, held recently in Anaheim, California , United States of America (USA), involved participants from different countries who were tested on their proficiency in the use of Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Excel.
The annual contest, which began 13 years ago, has never produced an African among the top three winners. In the past, participants from Nigeria, South Africa, Cameroon , Uganda and Ghana participated on the world stage but they never got close to the trophy. The championship started with a pool of 400,000 participants around the world who took Microsoft Office Specialist certification.
After competing at the national level, Olubunmi and Adonijah Airede of Regent School, Abuja, made it to the global stage to contest with other 123 finalists in Word, Excel and PowerPoint. The finalists in Microsoft Word took a timed exam in which they had to recreate a Word document by following instructions. They were scored on accuracy and speed.
Olubunmi, 15, clinched the second position in the championships, behind the winner, Dominique Howard of United States of America, while Hannah Wilson of the United Kingdom won the third place prize.
In one timed challenge, contestants were presented with a Word document with an image of Saturn and other elements such as text boxes and tables. They were asked to the recreate the document with the same specifications, such as the same margins and horizontal and vertical height of each object. Contestants were tested in Microsoft Office Word 2007 and 2010.
The competition is an annual event. Already entries are being accepted for the 2015 competition which will start in November 2014 and last over a period of six months. The competition organized by Readmanna in Nigeria, will test Word, Excel, PowerPoint 2010 and 2013. The competition is open to all students aged between 13 and 22 years old.
The United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, as part its social responsibility initiatives, hunts for talented Nigerians that would compete on the global stage. The bank sponsors an ICT competition for secondary and tertiary institution students in the country, organized by Readmanna Ventures Limited.
The competition starts at the school level where different students compete. Winners later compete at the inter-school and state competitions. Two winners that emerge from the finals are then sponsored to participate in the Certiport Worldwide competition on Microsoft Office. The competition is open to all secondary school and university students in the country, who are able to show proof of enrolment at an academic institution.
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