Dear friends,The victorious Kenyan athletes -- Jemima Sumgong and Eliud Kipchoge -- winners of this year's Olympic marathon, trained for many years to compete and win the long race in Rio. As the Swahili proverb says: subira huvuta heri. We wish them, their families, Kenya's whole Olympic team, and the nation congratulations! For our team at eKitabu, the Digital Essay Competition, now our fourth annual running of the program, is our race together with teachers and students across Kenya -- tunaenda digital!

For Digital Essay Competition 2016 we set out to grow the quality, reach, and numbers in DEC. Judging is happening now in Nairobi, and one special highlight I want to announce to you now is that this year, for the first time in a single year, we have essays -- not just registrations -- from schools in ALL 47 counties of Kenya!

Thanks to help from our sponsors and partners we were able to cross the country to bring the digital revolution to more places than ever before. Everywhere we went, students and teachers were excited to learn about the opportunities DEC brings to them to build digital literacy, to share their ideas and voices as content creators, and of course to compete for devices, scholarship funds and national recognition for themselves and their school.

I would like to thank the team of sponsors and partners that have come with us up to this point: Positivo BGH, Moran Publishers, Longhorn Publishers, Oxford University Press East Africa are major sponsors. Partners include Kenya Publishers Association, CEMASTEA, KICD, and Kenya's Ministry of Education, Science & Technology.

I also warmly thank the many schools that teamed with us to host events this year and welcomed us -- together with neighbouring schools -- with open arms. These gracious hosts and digital leaders were Visa Oshwal Primary School Nairobi, Marion Preparatory School, Nairobi, The Kenya High School, Nairobi, Technology Primary School, Murang'a, Bishop Gatimu Ngandu Girls' High School, Nyeri, Kaaga Primary School, Meru, Little Angels Primary School, Isiolo, Malindi High School, Kilifi, Rich Brains Academy, Kajiado, Moi Girls' High School, Eldoret, Uasin Gishu, Moi Forces Academy, Lanet Nakuru, and Maseno School, Kisumu.

As we come to the close of the 2016 Competition, we wish all students and teachers who submitted essays all the best!! Prize giving will take place at the end of September at Nairobi International Book Fair in Sarit Centre. We will contact all finalists and their teachers to join us for the prize giving.

Warmest regards, Will