The MTN Ghana Foundation has awarded scholarships to 200 underprivileged students pursuing undergraduate degrees, vocational and technical skills training at public tertiary institutions in the country.
This is part of the Foundation’s Bright Scholarship Scheme for the 2024/2025 academic year.
The MTN Bright Scholarship aims to ease the financial burden on needy but brilliant students by covering tuition and accommodation costs while providing stipends for books and laptops for the beneficiaries.
Speaking to journalists, the Senior Manager of MTN Ghana Foundation, Robert Kuzoe said “Our aim is to fund the tuition and accommodation fees of these students in order to give them peace of mind to study.”
He added that this year’s scholarship program also includes 20 students with various forms of disabilities.
In selecting the beneficiaries, the Foundation relied on credible panellists who are not affiliated with MTN Ghana to assess and screen applicants.
“We received over 2,000 applications,” Kuzoe noted, “but the panellists were able to narrow it down to the 200 students who really qualify and are truly in need of the scholarship.”
MTN Ghana’s CEO Stephen Blewett emphasised the company’s commitment to investing in education in Ghana, saying, “we believe that the next great idea or technology can come from Ghana…and that’s why we continue to invest in the people of Ghana.”
When asked about the exact amount invested in the scholarship program, Blewett declined to provide specific figures but confirmed that each student will receive accommodation, a laptop, tuition fees and stipends.
He also highlighted the Foundation’s deliberate inclusion of students with disabilities to ensure equitable access to educational opportunities.
The MTN Bright Scholarship was launched in 2018 as a commitment made by MTN to Ghanaians during its 20th anniversary in 2016.
At that time, MTN Ghana promised to award a total of 300 scholarships over three years. Due to the program’s significant impact on the beneficiaries, the Foundation decided to renew the scholarship in 2021 as part of MTN’s 25th anniversary celebration.
Over the past 15 years, the MTN Ghana Foundation has awarded over 1,000 scholarships to students from basic schools through to the tertiary levels.
In addition to the Bright Scholarship, MTN Ghana Foundation also launched the Teacher Improvement Award Program in 2015, which financially supports public school teachers who wish to upgrade their education to the graduate or postgraduate level.
