Golden Star Wassa Ltd (GSWL), through its Development Foundation, has at a ceremony on 29th August 2023 disbursed 460,000 cedis to 37 tertiary and 100 senior high school students in Wassa for the 2022/2023 academic year. The rigorous selection process ensured that brilliant but financially disadvantaged students can continue their education without interruption.
At the same ceremony, the Golden Star Development Foundation (GSDF) also inaugurated its Scholarship and Bursary unit to ensure sustainability and adherence to laid out guidelines in selection and future disbursement of funds.
The activities of the GSDF, which includes the scholarship and Bursary unit are detailed in the MoU that Golden Star signed with its host communities in 2017. Funding is by the underlisted processes; One ounce of gold produced and sold by GSWL, 1% of GSWL net pretax profit, contributions of 3rd party contractors as part of their CSR activities and yields from investments of GSDF
The activities of GSDF are also guided by a Board of trustees, Members of Community Mine Consultative Committee (CMCC) and Project Management Committee
Aside this disbursement GSWL already supports education in the host communities in various ways including, partnering with district education office to donate educational materials to basic schools in host communities to improve teaching and learning.
GSWL also provides financial support to host communities’ schools to facilitate extra curricula activities like excursions, field trips, sports activities, and other educational activities.
In addition Golden Star has adopted the Akyempim school B as a model school. The 9-unit school block has already been renovated by Golden Star and receives housing and other allowances for teachers. Currently, an ultra-modern 12-unit classroom is near completion ready to be handed over to the community.
Golden Star also partners with international organizations like German Development Corporation for interventions to primary school pupils to aid optimum attendance to school. An example is the distribution of 7,500 sanitary pads to females in all basic schools in Golden Star host communities.
Commenting on the inauguration and disbursement, through a speech read on his behalf by the Senior Process Manager, the Managing Director of Golden Star Wassa Mr. Shaddrack Sowah confirmed that
"Golden Star is happy that an intervention that started in 2007 and run until 2017 when the free SHS was introduced, has been able to reinvent itself in consultation with the CMCC to include support for tertiary education. As a company this is important to us. To be able to move with the times to ensure that our relationships with our host communities remain relevant".
The ceremony was attended by Member of Parliament for Wassa East, Hon. Isaac Agyei Mensah, members of the CMCC, management of GSWL, as well as traditional leaders from host communities.
