Accra, March 30, GNA – The Eric Danquah Foundation has awarded scholarships to three final-year students of the University of Ghana, pursuing a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Agriculture, to cover their tuition and accommodation fees for the 2022/2023 academic year.
They are Saeed Harris, Arthur Marcus, and Monic Semanu, all pursuing Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Agriculture with a specialisation in Crop Science, a statement issued to the Ghana News Agency said on Thursday.
Professor Eric Danquah, who established the Foundation, said they would also benefit from mentoring by accomplished academics.
“The mentors will infuse in the students the right mix of values, integrity, knowledge, and skills to make them game-changers and history makers in modern plant breeding for agricultural transformation in Ghana in the fullness of time,” he said.
The three scholars represented the second cohort of beneficiaries of the scholarship scheme, the statement said.
It said the scholarship scheme was the Foundation’s flagship initiative, dubbed the “Highflyers in Plant Breeding and Genetics Programme,” which was hosted at the West Africa Centre for Crop Improvement (WACCI), University of Ghana.
Prof Danquah said the beneficiaries were selected based on a competitive screening exercise that was supervised by Dr John Eleblu, a Senior Lecturer at the University of Ghana, and validated by Dr Naalamle Amissah, Head, Crop Science Department, University of Ghana.
Two former beneficiaries and Foundation fellows, Mr Bright Fiakeye and Madam Sandra Akrofi, as well as Madam Isabella Gyimah, the Administrator of the Foundation, were present.
Prof Danquah received the 2018 Global Confederation of Higher Education Associations for Agricultural and Life Sciences (GCHERA) World Agriculture Prize (WAP) in China.
He committed to using the $100,000 prize money to establish the Foundation to build capacity and help resolve Africa’s food insecurity challenges.
The Foundation, which commenced business in 2020, was opened to establishing partnerships with other organisations and individuals that share in the commitment to eradicate hunger in Africa.
GNA