ASA Savings and Loans has supported 25 needy but brilliant students with a total of GH¢25,000 to meet their educational needs in the Ayawaso Central Municipality in the Greater Accra Region.
The beneficiaries, drawn from Nima, Maamobi, Kotobabi, Accra Newtown, Alajo and surrounding communities, included tertiary and junior high school (JHS) students.
The support formed part of the company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative aimed at easing the financial burden on families and helping needy students remain in school.
The beneficiaries were selected based on their academic performance, with their educational results submitted for consideration.
At the ceremony, the Head of Internal Audit of ASA Savings and Loans, Jonathan Smith Aidoo, said the initiative was motivated by the company’s commitment to family values and its interactions with customers, which revealed that many were taking loans to meet educational expenses.
He explained that the support was a way for the company to give back to its customers and ease the financial burden associated with educating their children.
Mr Aidoo said the support covered various needs, including school fees, hostel fees, textbooks and other educational expenses, depending on the needs of individual beneficiaries.
Education support
Mr Aidoo disclosed that the company had encountered cases where some children of customers had been sent home because of unpaid school fees.
He said the company had, therefore, made educational support a major focus of its CSR activities this year.
The ASA Savings and Loans Head of Internal Audit said the organisation planned to expand the programme next year to support 500 children, including 200 who might not necessarily be connected to the company.
He also informed the beneficiaries that their progress in school would be monitored through independent feedback and annual surveys to assess the impact of the programme and gather feedback from customers.
Mr Aidoo stressed that it was essential to help young people acquire the skills needed to secure employment in an increasingly competitive economy.
He encouraged individuals and organisations willing to support needy but brilliant students to start with whatever resources they had and gradually increase their support.
The Head of Human Resource Management of the Ayawaso Central Municipal Directorate of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Ivy Ayiku-Ocansey, said the identification of needy but brilliant students was based on their academic ability and the financial circumstances that prevented them from accessing the resources needed for their education.
She said the GES had a scholarship scheme for needy but brilliant students, while metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies also had various interventions to assist learners facing financial difficulties.
Ms Ayiku-Ocansey explained that supporting needy students to remain in school enabled them to acquire skills, become self-reliant and eventually contribute to their families and society.
She urged organisations and individuals to support such students, saying they could work with schools and municipal authorities to identify learners who needed assistance.
Beneficiary
One of the beneficiaries, Abraham Borley Ofosu Martey, an Electrical Engineering student at the Accra Technical University, expressed gratitude for the support, saying financial difficulties in his family had made it difficult for him to continue his education.
He said the assistance would ease his financial burden and enable him to concentrate more on his studies without constantly worrying about his daily expenses.
Mr Ofosu Martey said his ambition was to become one of the best electrical engineers in the country, adding that the support had brought him closer to achieving his career goal.
He expressed appreciation to ASA Savings and Loans and other individuals and organisations supporting needy students and prayed for more opportunities for other young people facing similar financial difficulties.
