MIIF Awards GHS460,000 Scholarships to 45 Female UMaT Students

The Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) has awarded full scholarships worth GHS460,000 to 45 brilliant but needy female students at the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT), Tarkwa.

The award forms part of MIIF’s flagship Women from Mining Communities (WomCoM) scholarship scheme, launched in June 2024 as a key Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative. The programme is designed to empower academically gifted young women from Ghana’s mining communities to pursue education in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and mining-related fields.

Under the scheme, 43 undergraduate students received GHS10,000 each, while two postgraduate students were awarded GHS15,000 each, covering tuition, accommodation, and other essential academic expenses. The selection followed a rigorous and transparent process, supervised by a five-member steering committee comprising representatives from MIIF and UMaT.

In a speech read on her behalf by the MP for Ahafo Ano South-East, Mr. Yakubu Mohammed, MIIF Chief Executive Officer, Mrs. Justina Nelson, reaffirmed the Fund’s commitment to gender equity in the extractive sector.
“Our goal is not to provide partial help; we are here to make real impact. Beyond financial support, we are lifting burdens, raising aspirations, and changing narratives in communities that have often been left behind,” she said.

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Mrs. Nelson commended the leadership of UMaT, under Vice-Chancellor Prof. Richard Amankwah, and expressed gratitude to the steering committee for managing the scheme with professionalism and integrity since its inception. She also announced plans to extend the WomCoM programme to the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) to broaden its reach.

The MIIF CEO further acknowledged the support of corporate partners, including OmniBSIC Bank, Access Bank, Zenith Bank, First Atlantic Bank, First Bank, and Procus Ghana Limited (makers of Kivo products), noting that their contributions marked a new phase of collaboration between MIIF and Corporate Ghana in advancing education and gender equity.

“You were chosen not only for your academic potential but because you embody hope. Strive for excellence and remember you are paving the way for many more girls who will look to you and believe that they too can succeed,” Mrs. Nelson told the beneficiaries.

On his part, Prof. Amankwah emphasized that while mineral resources may deplete, investments in human capital would leave a lasting impact for generations. He described the scheme as “making great impact” in the lives of the awardees and called for more corporate support to ensure its sustainability.