Aker Energy’s student scholarship initiative, Aker Inspire Scholarship Program (AISP), has awarded full scholarships worth ¢3,164,000 to 71 students to pursue various courses at tertiary institutions across the country.
The AISP targets brilliant students from low-income households mainly from the coastal districts of the Western Region where its Exploration, Development and Production activities are based.
A statement issued by Aker Energy, notes that the scholarship covers:
1 Full tuition and lodging fees
2. One laptop for academic work
3. Semester Stipend
4. Student development programs including career and skills training
5.Internship Opportunities where possible and
6. Mentoring
Commenting on the initiative, Aker Energy Ghana Limited CEO, Kadijah Amoah noted, “As an organisation, we are committed to building the capacity of the Ghanaian to fill critical skills gaps. We are pleased that the majority of the beneficiaries will be pursuing courses in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics as well as a variety of other programs at Ghanaian tertiary institutions. This is a further demonstration of our commitment to Ghana which remains unwavering even before we commence oil production.”
From an initial pilot of 20 beneficiaries, the AISP is now a fully-fledged scholarship program extending to 51 more brilliant students who will have the opportunity to pursue their dream of tertiary education fully funded by Aker Energy and its license partners, Lukoil Overseas Ghana Tano Limited, the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) and Fueltrade Limited.
Kadijah Amoah said, “I have been touched by some of the personal stories of these beneficiaries. Like Sandra, who was forced into street hawking to take care of her sick mother and physically challenged father. Francis, who worked as a driver’s mate to support his family, and Christina who did not let her disability get in the way of her education. We are confident they will justify the investment”.
The AISP is designed to help improve access to tertiary education for Ghanaians. It replaces the Aker Energy Senior High School Scholarship program which gave more than a thousand high school students the opportunity to attend a school of their choice, fully funded.
The AISP reserves 90 per cent of places for beneficiaries from coastal districts of the Western Region with the remaining 10 per cent reserved for other regions of Ghana. At least 45 per cent of the beneficiaries are female.
