[Intl-tobacco] Ghana: BAT Donates To Education Trust Fund

[Robert Weissman]

BAT Donates To Education Trust Fund
by Ghanaian Chronicle
Source: All-Africa.com, Wednesday, 12/6/00

Accra - British American Tobacco (BAT), the leading manufacturer of
cigarettes in Ghana, on Monday donated ¢20 million to the Ghana Education
Trust Fund as its contribution to the strengthening of the education
sector. In a speech Mr.  Kofi Selby, corporate and regulatory affairs
director of BAT stressed the role of education in the country's
developmental process.

'Unfortunately, for some Ghanaians the increasing high cost of living
continues to deprive them of this right to good education' said Selby
pointing out that the education trust fund is meant to complement
government's funding of the sector.

The BAT director stressed that though a certain percentage of the VAT
proceeds is being channelled into education it is obvious it cannot
sustain the educational sector in the long run.

According to him, it is this realisation that has made the company to
contribute to the fund.

He announced that beginning from next year BAT's educational support
programme will amount to ¢300 million covering scholarships for employees
children, tobacco farmers at the SSS level in addition to that of
brilliant undergraduates.

Selby also announced that the establishment of a research chair at the
Faculty of Natural and Renewable Resources at the Kwame Nkrumah University
of Science and Technology and other needy faculties to the universities.

He announced that the company will by 2004 sponsor 87 students at the
tertiary and SSS levels. Chairperson of the function Mrs Sylvia Boi, also
a member of the board of trustees of the fund expressed the board's
appreciation for the kind gesture of BAT.

The company's scholarship schemes include the BAT Ghana SSS scholarship
for employees and tobacco farmers' children under which 15 scholarships
are awarded on competitive basis to 13 children of its employees and two
for registered tobacco farmers tenable at the SSS level.

In the undergraduate scheme, 10 undergraduates in the country's
universities are given a ¢1.5 million per student while fellowships are
also given for graduate studies among others.