The Damang Mine of Gold Fields Ghana (GFG) has, through the Gold Fields Ghana
Foundation (GFGF), offered twenty-five (25) students from the Company’s operational
areas full scholarships.

The students, all from University of Cape Coast, received GH¢6,000 annually, for the payment of school fees, hostel bills and other academic materials.

The beneficiaries also received laptop computers and textbooks.

Subject to their academic performances, the scholarships cover the entire years of the beneficiaries’ tertiary education.

In view of this, the Foundation in collaboration with the Students’ Financial Support Office (STuFSO-UCC) sensitized the beneficiary students on the need to take their
studies seriously to justify the investment being made in their education.

Addressing the gathering, the Community Affairs and Stakeholders Engagement Manager of the Damang Mine of Gold Fields Ghana, Mr. Abdel- Razak Yakubu, said GFGF sought to support the development of human resources in its impacted
communities.

Over the past years, he added, the Foundation had contributed immensely to the communities in which they operated.

He said, “So far, the GFGF scholarship Scheme had supported seven hundred and seventy (747) students to the tune of $1.4 million.”

Mr. Yakubu explained that GFG was of the hope that the development of the human capital through education and skill development was the most effective tool to overcome
poverty in Ghana, particularly in its host communities.

However, he said the main focus of the Foundation was now on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics education.

Nonetheless, he pointed out that students with humanities background were considered sometimes for the scholarship.

The Foundation, according to him, had also awarded persons with disabilities scholarship to pursue their education at the Akropong School for the Blind.

In line with gender mainstreaming, Mr Razak Yakubu announced that 49% of the current scholarship beneficiaries were women.

He said a good number of students under the scholarship programme had graduated with excellent results and advised the current beneficiaries to take their studies
seriously so as to enjoy the scholarship throughout their stay in school.

Mr Razak Yakubu also warned the beneficiaries that their performance would be monitored and authorities of the Foundation would not hesitate to withdraw anyone who
did not live up to expectation.

The Pro Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Rosemond Boohene, in a remark, commended the management of the Foundation for the initiative and urged the beneficiaries to make
good use of the opportunity.

The Financial Support Administrator at STuFSO-UCC, Ms. Grace Mensah, for her part, noted that the initiative was indeed worthy of emulation and could not have come at a
better time as many vulnerable but brilliant students needed financial support.

She said her outfit would continue to support needy but brilliant students in UCC in their academic pursuits through the Students’ Financial Support Office.

One of the beneficiaries, Lydia Tagoe, a Level 300 BSc. Nursing, thanked the sponsors for the gesture.

Present at the event included the Registrar, Mr. Jeff Onyame and the Dean of Students,Prof. Eugene Darteh.

Source: Documentation and Information Section-UCC

The Co-operative Credit Union Limited of University of Cape Coast (UCC) has
presented a cheque for sixty thousand Ghana Cedis (GHS 60,000) to support the 60th
anniversary of the University.

Making the donation on behalf of the Union, the Board Chairperson, Mrs CharityAbraham, indicated that the presentation was also part of the Union's Corporate Social
Responsibility to support the anniversary.

She expressed worry at the delay in returns received from the University which was the
seed revenue used in running the Credit Union.

Mrs. Abraham, therefore, called for expedition to ensure monthly deductions of UCC contributors come on time.

She announced that the vision of the Union was to get a GHS150, 000,000 asset-base
by the end of the tenure of the current Board of the Union.

She commended the members of the Union for their continuous immeasurable support
and contributions that had brought the Credit Union that far.

The Pro Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Rosemond Boohene, receiving the cheque, thanked the
Union for the support, also noting the harmonious relationship it maintained with staff of
the University.

Prof Boohene encouraged staff to develop the habit of saving and be active members of
the Union to facilitate the growth of its revenue.

Whilst calling on the Union to extend its tentacles to other members of the public, the
Pro Vice-Chancellor called on management and Board of the Union to help improve the
financial health and well-being of members.

Present at the meeting was the Registrar, Mr. Jeff Onyame.

 
In attendance at the meeting were management and Board members of the Credit
Union.

Source: Documentation and Information Section-UCC

The School of Agriculture, University of Cape Coast (UCC) has joined the rest of the world to celebrate this year's World Food Day with a Farmers’ Market event.

This year's global theme for the celebration was "Safe Food Today for a Healthy Tomorrow." 

Locally, the School marked the Day on the theme, “Leave no one behind" and it aimed at making food systems more resilient to withstand global volatility and deliver affordable and sustainable diets for all. 

The Day is celebrated widely by many organizations concerned with food security, including the World Food Programme, Food and Agriculture Organization and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.

Speaking at a Symposium ahead of the opening of the Farmers’ Market event, the honourable Central Regional Minister, Justina Marigold Assan, urged the public to prioritize food safety, stressing that the sector played a pivotal role in developing policies and regulatory frameworks in establishing and implementing effective food safety systems.

"That notwithstanding", she pointed out, “it was the collective responsibility of every Ghanaian to ensure that food safety was maintained at a standard that would improve the quality of the lives of our people."

Mrs. Assan expressed gratitude to the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) for supporting the School of Agriculture. She said KOICA had also expressed its readiness to support Districts in the region to produce “Central Rice" in large quantities. 

"When we talk about ‘Central Rice’, it is rice KOICA is supporting our local farmers to produce, well labeled with delicious taste" she added, "Very soon if you want to go into rice production, you need to come to Central Region for your quality rice seed."

The keynote Speaker, a former Member of Parliament for Twifo Atti-Morkwa Constituency, Mr. Abraham Dwuma Odum, called on Ghanaians to patronize local dishes derived from crops grown in Ghana to provide the much needed markets to farmers to ensure food security. 

He said foreign foods and products such as polished imported rice posed a threat to health of consumers.

Mr. Odum, therefore, appealed to people to consume locally produced nutritious foods to avoid diseases associated with foreign processed food products.

He noted that Central Region had the capacity to produce rice for the country.

He said the Planting for Food and Jobs policy was very good; however, its design and execution had had a toll on its implementation.

The Central Regional Director of Agriculture, Dr. Peter Omega, in his remarks, asked policy makers to support policy measures to strengthen national food safety systems and ensure they comply with food safety systems, as well as engage in multi sectoral collaboration at the local, national, regional and global levels.

He said food businesses should comply with international food standards and engage employees, suppliers and other stakeholders to grow and develop a food safety culture.

The Symposium was chaired by the Dean of the School of Agriculture, Prof. Henry De-Graft Acquah.

As part of the event, a Farmers’ Market was held where patrons had the chance to purchase fresh produce.

Source: Documentation and Information Section-UCC

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has reiterated the commitment of his
government to expand infrastructure at University of Cape Coast (UCC) to absorb the
teeming Free Senior High School graduates’ access to university education.
“Indeed, I assure you of the commitment of my government to give the University the
required support to expand its infrastructure for the benefit of the numerous senior high
school graduates who now qualify to access university education” he said.
The President was speaking at the grand durbar climaxing the 60th anniversary
celebration of UCC.
He expressed gratitude to UCC for acknowledging the benefits of the Free Senior High
School intervention since its inception in 2017.
In that light, President Akufo-Addo indicated his readiness to fulfil his promise to support
the construction of students’ accommodation facility in the University.

Despite the harsh economic conditions currently facing the country, he observed that
government would not renege on its commitment to provide quality education and equal
opportunities for future generations to access good education.
“Regardless of the difficulties currently confronting our nation, government will continue
to intervene and remain responsible for the provision of free and quality basic and
secondary education for all”, President Akufo-Addo added, insisting: “Education is the
equalizer of opportunities”.
Whilst finding solutions to complex and far reaching problems across borders and
disciplines, the President charged the University to remain “pure and unadulterated in
the provision of quality academic and intellectual discourse”.
He expressed joy at the number of products from UCC occupying enviable positions in
the country, especially in public universities.
President Akufo-Addo, who was justly proud of UCC’s achievement at the 2023 Times
Higher Education (THE) World Universities Rankings (WUR), encouraged stakeholders
to put their shoulders to the wheel to achieve more laurels for UCC.

The President, therefore, urged traditional authorities in Cape Coast to join forces with
government to stop all encroachment on UCC lands.

UCC urged to Champion Agenda “Grow What We Eat”

The Chancellor of UCC, Dr. (Sir) Sam Esson Jonah, has charged the School of
Agriculture of the University to take the lead in providing better yielding crop varieties in
ensuring increase in crop production.
“We are entrusting this school with the responsibility of ensuring that we grow what we
eat and to a large extent eat what we grow. I expect you to establish a faculty that is
capable of forming strong partnerships, bonds and collaborations with institutions and
other relevant local bodies, pertinent to the development of our agricultural sector”, he
said.
The Chancellor underlined the need for the University to be innovative in the training of
students to ensure its products remained relevant to meet the changing global demand.

The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Johnson Nyarko Boampong, for his part, promised to ensure
that the University chalked up many academic successes during his tenure.
To achieve that, he appealed to government to consider giving financial clearance for
the recruitment of staff for the University to reduce the workload of teaching staff.
He attributed the accomplishments of the University to all the stakeholders and founding
fathers of the University.
Early on, President Akufo-Addo commissioned the School of Graduate Studies
Complex, a six-storey Guest House for the Institute of Education, as well as the School
of Medical Sciences Administration Block.

The durbar, held at the New Examination Centre, attracted high profile personalities,
including politicians, academics, traditional authorities amongst others.
Source: Documentation and Information Section-UCC