By Anthony Adongo Apubeo
Bolgatanga, Sept. 15, GNA – ASA Savings and Loans Ghana Limited, a microfinance and financial institution, has provided educational support totalling GH¢25,000.00 to 25 needy but brilliant students in the Upper East and North East Regions, to help them meet some of their educational expenses.
Each of the beneficiaries, drawn from junior high, second-cycle and tertiary institutions within the company’s operational area, including Bolgatanga, Navrongo and Nalerigu received GH¢1,000.00.
Mr Sadik Mohammed, the Bolgatanga Area Manager of ASA Savings and Loans, said the initiative formed part of the company’s corporate social responsibility, aimed at supporting communities within which it operated.
He said the company considered investment in education important to developing the next generation of professionals and leaders and was therefore committed to supporting students who demonstrated academic potential but faced financial challenges.
Mr Mohammed said ASA Savings and Loans, which began operations in Ghana in 2008 as ASA Ghana and ventured into savings and loans in 2023, currently had 168 branches across the country.
He said the company initially focused on supporting women, particularly market women, to access capital to expand their businesses.
He explained that the company had introduced various loan products, including small loans, SME loans and an education loan, to make financing more accessible to its customers.
Mr Mohammed said the education loan was designed to enable parents to pay their children’s school fees without having to deplete their business capital.
He said the company’s interventions were not limited to financial services but also included community support initiatives in education and health.
Mr Mohammed said ASA Savings and Loans had previously supported the Nayagnia Primary School with furniture and polytank, and renovated and equipped a Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) compound in the same community.
He said the company had further lined up health-related interventions, including general health screening and breast cancer screening for women in October, as part of its commitment to the communities in which it operated.
Mr Robert Nintang Basumah, the Upper East Regional Planning Officer, Ghana Education Service, commended ASA Savings and Loans for the support, expressing optimism that it would go a long way to easing the financial burden of their parents.
He urged the parents who accompanied their wards to the ceremony to receive the cheques, to guide the children and ensure that they remained in school to study to become responsible citizens in society.
He also advised the students to justify their selection to encourage the company to extend similar support to other students and pupils for them to also realise their dreams.
Ms Theresa Alegmiah, the Bolgatanga Municipal Deputy Director in charge of Finance and Administration of the Ghana Education Service (GES), commended ASA Savings and Loans for the initiative.
She said financial difficulties continued to prevent some talented students from pursuing their educational aspirations, stressing that the support would help remove some of the financial barriers confronting them.
She urged the beneficiaries to take their studies seriously and make good use of the opportunity provided by ASA Savings and Loans.
“My dear children, let us be mindful that this will motivate you to study harder for your successful completion,” she said.
Ms Sirina Buhadi, a Student of Kintampo College of Health, expressed gratitude to ASA Savings and Loans for the support and pledged to study hard.
GNA
Edited by Caesar Abagali/ Christabel Addo
Reporter: Anthony Adongo Apubeo
Reporter’s email: [email protected]