Wa, Feb. 13, GNA – The Resilience Against Climate Change-Social Transformation Research and Policy Advocacy (REACH-STR) Project has offered scholarships to 14 Masters and PhD students.
The students are from the University of Ghana in Accra and the Simon Diedong Dombo University of Business and Integrated Development Studies (SDD-UBIDS) in Wa.
As part of their training programmes, the recipients will conduct research on social transformation topics related to the project work streams on climate resilience, migration, and gender as well as participate in policy advocacy events.
REACH-STR is a six year project with funding from the European Union’s Ghana Agriculture Programme (EUGAP). It is being led by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) in collaboration with the University of Ghana – Centre for Migration Studies, SDD-UBIDS, and the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) – Science and Technology Policy Research Institute.
Speaking during a virtual event to welcome the students, Dr Charity Osei-Amponsah, a Researcher and Project Coordinator, REACH-STR Project, said the objective of the event was to celebrate the achievement of the recipients and as well introduce them to the project staff and teams.
Again, the event will connect recipients to each other and provide opportunity for networking, among them the EU Officials, and the project implementers.
It would afford recipients the opportunity to share testimonies and expectations about the scholarship and to as well raise awareness of the capacity building component to ensure visibility of the REACH-STR Project.
Ms Susana Martins, the Programme Officer, Delegation of European Union Delegation to Ghana, noted that REACH was one of three projects under the EUGAP, “Productive investment for agriculture in the savannah ecological zones of Ghana” of which REACH-STR formed the third component.
The overall objective, she said was to ensure more inclusive and sustainable economic growth and policy and programming approaches achieved in the Upper West Region and Sawla-Tuna-Kalba District in the Savannah Region by 2025.
Ms Martins, therefore, reminded the scholarship recipients of the need to focus in order to not only complete their various programmes of study within schedule but to also impact society with high quality research work.
Dr George Essegbey, Chief Executive Officer, Technology Development Centre, CSIR-STEPRI, Accra congratulated the scholarship recipients for successfully passing through a vigorous application and selection processes.
He said social transportation was what Ghana and indeed the whole of Africa needed to advance her development and urged them to work hard to complete their programmes and impact society through research.
Mr Joseph Apeeliga, Technical Advisor to the Programme Coordinating Unit (PCU) of EUGAP, Upper West Regional Directorate of Agriculture, congratulated the students and assured them that their doors were opened to assist them with any information they needed to carry on with their research work.
Mr Felix Dordaa, one of the scholarship recipients pursuing a PhD programme at SDD-UBIDS, said the scholarship opportunity was in line with his career objective of becoming a researcher in climate change related issues.
He said there was a contemporary development issue that required critical attention and solutions underpinned by scientific studies.
He said the scholarship had taken the financial burden off him, thereby, giving him ample time to concentrate on his studies to complete successfully.
Ms. Nashirata Dawuda, one of the scholarship beneficiaries pursuing MPhil in Migration Studies at the University of Ghana, thanked the REACH-STR Project partners for the grand opportunity to study, especially in an area that was going to impact a place so dear to her.
GNA