Team Youth Forward, comprising Rada Prapaikornkiet and Kanjaree Suppawittaya from Saint Joseph Convent School, Thailand, emerged as the top winner in the recently concluded ASEAN Data Science Explorers (ASEAN DSE) Regional Finals 2021. The winning entry focused on empowering farming towards a sustainable future of the ASEAN Community covering SDG 2 – Zero Hunger, SDG 4 – Quality Education, and SDG 8 – Decent Work and Economic Growth. 2021 marks the fifth-year milestone for the ASEAN DSE competition with a renewed focus on UN SDGs that target climate and sustainability.

“We are so surprised, excited, and honored to be the ASEAN DSE Regional Finals Winner! We didn’t expect this at all. This journey has been memorable and life-changing for us. We learned so many new skills from this competition,” said Team Youth Forward. “Lastly, here is our message to ASEAN’s youth: Go for it! Don’t hesitate to join ASEAN DSE and your voices will definitely be heard, as our slogan: Let’s grow together as one ASEAN community that harmonizes in one vision, one identity, and become the remarkable changemakers of ASEAN’s future!”

Working Together for Sustainability Goals 

Since 2017, ASEAN Foundation and SAP have been engaging the university students in Southeast Asia through the ASEAN DSE programme to develop data-driven solutions that highlight six Sustainable Development Goals namely Clean Water and Sanitation (SDG 6), Affordable and Clean Energy (SDG 7), Decent Work and Economic Growth (SDG 8), Sustainable Cities and Communities (SDG 11), Responsible Consumption and Production (SDG 12) and Climate Action (SDG 13), by harnessing SAP’s Analytics Cloud software. The SAP Analytics Cloud solution combines BI, augmented and predictive analytics, and planning capabilities into one cloud environment.

This year, the competition was focused on insights and data-driven solutions that address climate action and sustainability. Against the COVID-19 backdrop, the ASEAN DSE conducted the data analytics challenge in a hybrid model– hosting virtual and in-person events. The awarding session for the regional competition was held on the second day of the three-day event, which was live-streamed on the ASEAN Foundation’s Facebook channel and achieved over 2,200 views.

As the top winner of the regional finals, the Thailand team was awarded the Regional Champion trophy and prize money of US$1,500. The first runner-up recognition was given to Team Sprinkle of Cambodia, comprising Chakriya Suy and Serei Neath Reasey from Kirirom Institute of Technology, who featured recycling centers as the solution for waste management covering SDG 8 – Decent Work and Economic. Team Brain Drain of Malaysia, comprising Ryan Kok Lam Liew and Jia Hui Ng from Sunway University, took the second runner-up place for their presentation that focused on prioritising e-waste covering SDG 12 – Responsible Consumption and Production.

Beyond the ASEAN Foundation and SAP Data Science Challenge

Going beyond the ASEAN Foundation and SAP data science challenge, the ASEAN DSE programme also delivered enablement sessions, both online and in-person, in partnership with Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in ten ASEAN member states (AMS) to equip the youth, including those with limited access to technology and youth with disabilities, with next-level digital skills. As a result of this collaborative effort, the programme was able to cascade SAP Analytics Cloud training to 11,782 students and lecturers in 2021, with females making up 53{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22} of the youth beneficiaries.

“The ASEAN DSE initiative sets the foundation of a digital world where our ASEAN youth are inspired and motivated to create and solve challenges through technology. This will also cultivate digital inclusion by imbuing youths and lecturers with data analytics skills and nurturing and deepening a pool of homegrown talents in the region to build the workforce of the future,” said Verena Siow, President and Managing Director of SAP Southeast Asia.

“Through our collaboration with the ASEAN Foundation, we aim to empower the diverse ASEAN community to be the world’s economic powerhouse, be at the forefront of innovation, and drive sustainable economies,” she added.

Throughout the event, the regional finalists have participated in series of activities such as team building, networking sessions, storyboard presentations to build connections, strengthen their future-ready skills and grow their appreciation for being a citizen of ASEAN. On the last day, all participants engaged in sharing sessions with the ASEAN Secretariat, Permanent Mission of Brunei Darussalam to ASEAN, alumni of ASEAN DSE, and social enterprises.

“ASEAN Foundation and SAP aspire to help young people in the region to be future-ready by nurturing their 21st-century skills. Aligned with the theme of Brunei’s ASEAN Chairmanship 2021 ‘We Care, We Prepare, We Prosper,’ this programme also allows youth to better understand the shared challenges the region must overcome together and fosters a deeper sense of belonging towards the ASEAN Community. We also hope that the collaboration between ASEAN Foundation and SAP can inspire more public-private partnerships in the future to support the development of our future generation,” said Dr. Yang Mee Eng, Executive Director of ASEAN Foundation.

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ASEAN DSE is a flagship programme under the ASEAN Foundation’s partnership with SAP that encourages the youth of Southeast Asian countries to deliver data-driven, innovative, and feasible solutions that tackle pressing socio-economic in the region across the six United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This year, with a renewed focus on SDGs that target climate and sustainability, the regional data analytics competition for tertiary students recognised the 10 best all-rounded concepts based on creativity, feasibility, innovation, and the team’s ability to demonstrate the solution’s implementation.

“2021 marks the fifth-year milestone for the ASEAN DSE competition. Initially starting as a platform to empower youths with digital skills to grow the next generation of leaders, this year, we have added climate action as a key focus in our program, This sharpened focus is aligned with the ASEAN priorities. I am proud of the diversity of ideas the participants brought to this initiative. Their passion for creating social impact is impressive. ASEAN DSE continues to play a role in educating and inspiring the future workforce by enabling youths so that we, as one ASEAN, can be a sustainable economic powerhouse,” said Mr. Atul Tuli, Managing Director of SAP Indochina.

2021 National Champions

In 2021, 714 students from ten ASEAN countries across the region competed to represent their country in the National Finals. Here are the 10 national winners to compete for the regional finals next month:

Brunei: Team Start Up- Food Waste Minimisation Towards a Sustainable World

Cambodia: Team Sprinkle- Recycle Center is the solution for waste management; To reduce municipal solid waste in urban areas

Indonesia: Team Spotindev- Bridging Sustainable Fashion in ASEAN Society

Laos: Team Growy- Food Loss and Waste Reduction to Sustainable Community: Collaborative of every sector can help us to achieve SDG 12.3 by 2030

Malaysia: Team Brain Drain: Prioritizing E-Waste: How Can Earth Keep Up with Digital Integration

Myanmar: Team Glory- Newborn to Travel: Downfall &Recovery to Tourism

Philippines: Team Amplify- ASEAN Sustainable Consumption Loop: Limiting waste and sustaining capabilities in ASEAN communities through real-time information cloud

Singapore: Team Czus- Unsustainable Necessities: Digitizing palm oil supply chains

Thailand: Team Youth Forward- Altering Collars: Empowering Farming Towards a Sustainable Future of the ASEAN Community

Vietnam: Team Dastronaut- Adaptive Urban-Industrial Symbiosis Strategy: Utilizing Municipal Waste as an Economic Source

Harnessing SAP Data Analytics Software

In 2021, the programme organised by SAP and ASEAN Foundation in collaboration with NGOs was able to deliver SAP Analytics Cloud training to 11,782 students and lecturers– a 158{aa282f308afcc222aaa21b0478c79e01a8fedd01972e2180867097bd93930f22} increase from 2020 (4,563 youths and lecturers). 

Sharing their experience in the competition utilising the SAP data analytics software, Malaysia’s ASEAN DSE National Champion Team Brain Drain from Sunway University said:

“Data analytics has helped us make the process of identifying problems in ASEAN countries, analysing data, and coming up with solutions to solve the identified problems much easier. With that, we would like to thank the ASEAN Foundation and SAP as the organisers of the ASEAN Data Science Explorers for providing this opportunity for us to venture further into this field to get hands-on experience in exploring data, and creating data-driven solutions.” 

Dr. Yang Mee Eng, ASEAN Foundation’s Executive Director, explained that amidst today’s uncertainties, the organisation and SAP’s commitment to empower the ASEAN youth with future-ready skills and accelerate the growth of the digital economy in the region is reflected by ASEANDSE. Commending the participants that showcased innovative data-driven proposals, Dr. Eng stressed:

“It is a testament to what our youth can do when provided with an immersive platform to showcase their talents. We believe that if given the opportunity, our ASEAN youth can create impactful solutions for the community to prosper. We also hope that the collaboration between ASEAN Foundation and SAP can inspire more public-private partnerships in the future to support the development of our future generation.”

We, at InsideSAP, advocate sustainability practices into SAP projects through our own TRP (Talent Resource Planning) platform, InsideSAP Careers. Aside from championing contactless and paperless recruitment, we plant trees for every person hired, across every project, every month.

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10 months in 2020, the widespread move to virtual conferences, classes, and even competitions have become part of the new normal. Recently, the ASEAN Data Science Explorers (DSE) 2020 National Finals in the Philippines streamed live via Facebook, which attracted over 2,300 viewers. This shows that the pursuit of innovation continues even in the time of the pandemic.

ASEAN DSE is the flagship programme launched in 2017 by ASEAN Foundation and SAP designed to explore the youth’s potential and create a positive social impact in Southeast Asia. The regional competition calls for data-driven proposals from tertiary students across the 10 ASEAN Member States harnessing SAP Analytics to develop solutions towards ASEAN growth and development to improve people’s lives. 

This year, a total of 852 youths across the region competed to represent their country in the National Finals, with 4563 students and lecturers trained in SAP Analytics Cloud.

Representing the Philippines

In the Philippines, the top three teams of the ASEAN DSE 2020 National Finals came from Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology, University of the Philippines – Visayas, and Ateneo de Manila University. Jairus Cairo Libunao and Alleah Eunice Tuliao of Team Incognito from Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology were declared national champions to represent the country in the regional finals this November. The duo’s project focused on waste management.

First-runner up Team Gugma comprised of Kyle Anne Villariza and Genesis Daquinan from the University of the Philippines Visayas presented a project designed to tackle the overexploitation issue of the ASEAN fisheries. Meanwhile, second runner-up Team Board Men comprised of Gabriel Carlo Gamulo and John Michel Lee from Ateneo de Manila University tackled neural community.

The Philippines ASEAN DSE 2020 representative Team Incognito shared their unforgettable experience winning the national finals and how they decided to explore data science on waste management. They said:

“Going into the national finals was really nerve-wracking and, at the same time, exciting! We remember the challenges we had to face in joining this competition. We didn’t know what data science really was. Luckily, our college conducted training on how to do data analysis. That started it all!

“From there, we came up with a storyboard on waste management because we noticed that there’s a loophole in our current waste management system. We thought that if we don’t do any actions about this now, it will continue to cause fatal consequences to us and the environment.” 

National Youth Commission Commissioner-at-Large Paul Anthony Pangilinan said:

“Now more than ever, we need the youth’s creativity and innovativeness in finding solutions and ways to solve emerging problems that our region and the world are facing.

“Their participation is paramount, especially in our recovery from this pandemic and in pushing forward our collective vision of a more resilient and sustainable future for all.”

The three winning teams were judged based on their ability to design the best all-rounded concept that tackles ASEAN socio-economic issues, driven by data insights. Aside from the team’s ability to demonstrate the solutions’ implementation, their projects were critiqued according to creativity, feasibility, and innovation.

Equipping for the New Normal

The ASEAN DSE 2020 reflects the ASEAN Foundation and SAP’s shared objective to equip today’s youth with future-ready skills and explore data science to find innovative solutions to thrive in the new normal.

SAP Philippines Managing Director Edler Panlilio shared:

“Together with the ASEAN Foundation, we at SAP strongly encourage the youth to use their newly learned skills from SAP Analytics Cloud to create sustainable innovations for current social and economic issues.” 

Panlilio encourages the youth to utilise digital skills for their self-development. He added: 

“Digital skills are more relevant now in the middle of our current pandemic situation, and as we look towards recovery. We are pleased to see that youths in ASEAN can make a difference in that goal and improve people’s lives.”

Dr. Yang Mee Eng, the ASEAN Foundation’s Executive Director also said:

“We are very happy to see so many innovative data-driven proposals presented by all National Finalists today. It is a testament to what our youths can do when exposed to and equipped with relevant digital skills and provided with an immersive platform to showcase their talents. We believe that our ASEAN youths can create impactful solutions for the community to prosper if given the opportunity.” 

The ASEAN DSE 2020 also supports Viet Nam’s ASEAN Chairmanship theme of building a “Cohesive and Responsive ASEAN”.

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