Children from all over the world were invited to submit their paintings for the competition. Sixty one of the most outstanding works of art were selected by a jury of experts (Qayyum Chowdhury, Hashem Khan, Rafiqun Nabi, Abdus Shakoor Shah, Abdul Barq Alvi and Dr Farida Zaman) from 16,203 noteworthy entries from children in over 33 countries.

This year the Grand Prix (The highest honour in the competition) has gone to Md Nazmuz Sakib Priyo, a 10- year-old from the district of Nilphamari, Bangladesh. The theme of his artwork represents the adverse effect of natural disasters (cyclone).

More children than anticipated picked up crayon and paintbrush during the well organised events. Participants were free to choose their medium--water colour, pastel, crayon, ink among others. The participants were in the age group of 6-18 years.

Barrister Moudud Ahmed, the minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs attended the occasion as the chief guest and distributed the prizes among the winners and their representatives. The state minister for Women and Children's Affairs Alamgir Kabir was present as a special guest. Professor Zubaida Gulshan Ara, chairman of BSA presided over the function.

The special guest of the event, James Jennings, chief of education section Unicef, Bangladesh said, "Children are an integral part of our society. They are our future. To get a better understanding of the world, we should be aware of their views as well.

Children's painting is an expression of their imagination. Our role is to nurture the budding talents. Unicef has always encouraged activities related to children."

Six hundred and fifty two selected paintings will be exhibited till July 25 daily from 11am to 6:30pm.

The Daily Star and ATN Bangla are the media partners of the event.