The Mayor of Accra, Michael Kpakpo Allotey, has launched a special Education Support Fund for the children of farmers and fishermen in the metropolis. The fund has been established with an initial seed amount of GHC 50,000.
This total comprises a GHC 30,000 contribution from the Mayor and a GHC 20,000 donation from the Member of Parliament for the Odododiodioo Constituency, Hon. Alfred Nii Kotey Ashie
.
The initiative sought to, among other things, recognise the critical role farmers and fishermen play in national development and ensure that their children have access to school fees, scholarships, and other educational support.
Mayor Allotey launched the intervention at the 41st edition of the National Farmers and Fishers’ Day celebration held at the forecourt of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) on Friday, organised in collaboration with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture..
The Mayor said the fund would provide targeted assistance to wards of farmers and fishermen so that no child would be denied an education because of their parents’ occupation or income level.
He explained that the initiative was also intended to make farming and fishing more attractive to the younger generation by demonstrating that these occupations could secure a dignified future for families.
Speaking to journalists after the launch, the Mayor said the initiative complemented the broader support farmers were receiving from the government under the leadership of President John Dramani Mahama, adding that the AMA was aligning itself with this vision by providing targeted assistance to their children.
The Mayor linked the new fund to his wider youth agenda, which focuses on entrepreneurship and job creation.
He cited the example of a young man who recently approached him for GHS 6,000 to start a liquid soap business, and who later returned the capital after successfully producing, selling and making a profit from the venture.
He stated that such experiences had convinced him that with modest but well-targeted support, many more young people could start their own businesses, create jobs, and contribute to the local economy.
Mayor Allotey urged the youth to develop viable business ideas, assuring them that the AMA was ready to support initiatives that would benefit the city and its residents.
The Mayor pointed out that the new education support fund and the youth empowerment drive formed part of a broader strategy to promote dignity in work, expand opportunity and ensure that no child was left behind because their parents were farmers or fishermen.
