The Underground Mining Alliance (UMA), in partnership with the Newmont Ahafo Development Foundation (NADeF), has awarded academic and apprenticeship scholarships worth GH¢110,000 to 12 needy youth in the Ahafo Region.
The support was provided through the UMA/NADeF Community Excellence Scholarship and Apprenticeship Programme, instituted in 2021 to provide annual financial and logistical assistance to brilliant, needy youth from the 10 host communities of the Newmont Ahafo Mine.
The support is to enable the underprivileged to pursue either academic education or vocational training, thereby breaking the cycle of poverty and building resilient, self-reliant communities.
Beneficiaries
They were made up of 10 apprentices and two students from the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT) in Tarkwa and the College of Health at Yamfo.
While the two students, a male and a female, received over GH¢22,000 each, the 10 apprentices also received a full set of essential equipment and funds to support their daily living.
At the 5th edition of the awards ceremony at Ntotroso in the Ahafo Region, the Board Chair of NADeF, Professor Yaw Fosu-Kusi, said so far, 10 tertiary students and 47 apprentices had benefitted from the scholarship with a commitment of GH¢ 504,513.56 from UMA.
He explained that the 10 beneficiary students pursued courses in science and engineering at universities across the country.
On the apprentices, Prof. Fosu-Kusi said most of them were into hairdressing, dressmaking, electrical installation, as well as welding and fabrication.
He explained that the support covered their tuition, accommodation, learning materials, and essential tools to ensure that financial hardship did not derail the dreams of deserving students.
Prof. Fosu-Kusi said the awards programme was designed deliberately to support the youth who had demonstrated academic excellence, discipline, and determination but face financial constraints.
He said the beneficiaries were selected through a rigorous and transparent process based on academic merit, demonstrated need, and community validation.
Sustainable devt
Prof. Fosu-Kusi said the foundation was established with a clear and unwavering mandate to translate the benefits of mining into sustainable development outcomes for their host communities.
He said over the years, NADeF had invested heavily in infrastructure, health, livelihoods, and most importantly, education.
Prof. Fosu-Kusi said education remained the most powerful tool for breaking the cycle of poverty.
“It is for this reason that scholarship and skills development programmes continue to be a core pillar of NADeF’s work,” he said.
He said the awards initiative was not just about financial support; “it is about hope, opportunity, and long-term capacity building within the Ahafo Region”.
Appreciation
Prof. Fosu-Kusi expressed his appreciation to UMA for its commitment to human capital development and the sustainability of the initiative.
“This long-term commitment demonstrates true corporate citizenship and a genuine desire to invest in the future of the communities that host mining operations,” he said.
Prof. Fosu-Kusi advised the beneficiaries to uphold the highest standards of integrity and academic excellence.
The Alternate Project Manager of UMA, Peter Owusu-Mensah, said apart from the scholarship programme, UMA, through its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), had undertaken impactful projects in the past year across the mine communities.
He mentioned educational, sanitation, water, electrical installations, donation of medical equipment, sponsoring of medical screening for residents and construction of walkways for Asutifi North District Hospital as some of the impactful projects executed.
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