The ceremony, held in the Ministry of National Education Meeting Hall, was attended by Minister of National Education Nazım Çavuşoğlu, Director of the Higher Education and Foreign Relations Department Behçet Çelebi, EUL Rector Prof. Dr. Mehmet Ali Yükselen, Dean of the EUL Faculty of Engineering Prof. Dr. Ertuğ Aydın, and the late Birkan Uzun’s father, retired Director of the General Secondary Education Department, Cengiz Topel Uzun.

Speaking at the ceremony, Birkan Uzun’s father, Cengiz Topel Uzun, stated that Birkan Uzun had been a role model for Turkish Cypriot youth through his achievements in both academic and sporting fields. Recalling Birkan Uzun’s significant accomplishments through his “7 Continents, 7 Summits” goal, Uzun said that they would continue their efforts to keep his son’s name alive and inspire young people.

EUL Rector Prof. Dr. Mehmet Ali Yükselen also emphasized the importance of supporting successful students, stating that this year, Merve Genç had earned the right to receive the Birkan Uzun Scholarship as the most successful TRNC citizen student in the field of information technologies and software. Yükselen stressed that opening opportunities for successful young people is one of the university’s fundamental missions and thanked all institutions that contributed.

Minister of National Education Çavuşoğlu, in his speech emphasized that societies can move toward the future by valuing the individuals they raise. Stating that preserving Birkan Uzun’s name and presenting him as a role model for young people is of great importance, Çavuşoğlu said, “It is very valuable for us to raise more individuals like Birkan in our country. As the Ministry of National Education, our duty is to educate successful young people like Birkan.”

Expressing that the scholarship carries great meaning, Çavuşoğlu told Merve Genç that he hopes she will continue from where Birkan Uzun left off by developing herself academically, socially, and culturally, and by carrying the flag even further.