BUTT-TIS BUURI Scholarship Fund has inaugurated an Advisory Board to develop the fund to support needy but brilliant students in Bawku West District of the Upper East Region to further their education.

Inaugurating the Board, Dr. John Kingsley Krugu, who founded the scholarship fund called on resourceful individuals from the district to support the fund to help expand access to education.

The five-member Advisory Board, among other things, would advise on how to develop the fund and help it fulfill its objectives of providing economic, educational and training needs of students.

Mr. Churchill A. Ayindana, Madam Georgina Apinpanta, Mr. Bismark Bugbilla Issifu, Madam Gilberta Akuka, and Rev. Rtd Edward Ayamba Abuki (Chairman) will serve on the Advisory Board for a two-year tenure.

The Advisory Board will also assist the Management of the fund in choosing and granting scholarships to needy but brilliant students in order to promote and expand access to education and skills training in the district.

Rev. Rtd. Edward Ayamba Abuki, Board Chairman, emphasised the commitment of the Board to achieving the expectations of the founder and beneficiaries.

Describing his personal efforts to gain admission to university, Dr Krugu said the zeal and determination of struggling students in his district influenced the drive to help them climb the educational ladder.

"Having supported a good number of students in the past years and seeing the continuous demand for support from needy students, I decided to establish an educational endowment fund, through which I can reach out to other philanthropies/benevolent individuals and organizations to contribute to supporting young people enroll in tertiary training, stay throughout the training and come out successfully," Dr. Krugu said.

The Scholarship Fund is an independent educational endowment fund that also seeks to increase skills training, and financial services for young people who are unable to continue their education beyond high school.

Though the fund is explicit on the number of students to support, as it grows, it is expected to relieve as many students as possible within the shortest possible time who want to attend a two, three, or four-year tertiary/vocational school or an apprenticeship programme.

"The Fund aims to provide high school graduates of all backgrounds and needs with future academic or trade opportunities. It is the hope that this fund will allow students from Bawku West District to select from appropriate educational or training options that encourages and motivate each beneficiary student to learn and grow."

When a student is chosen to benefit from the funding, he or she will have access to learning or training environment that will stimulate and nourish their physical, intellectual, creative, emotional, social, and moral growth in order for them to become productive residents in their communities.

According to Dr. Krugu, tertiary education, vocational education, and apprenticeships enable students to interact, collaborate, and engage with educators and employers in ways that serve to assure their future job prospects.

Therefore, the fund intends to provide for the growth of secure, self-assured, and responsible youth and adults, as well as practical experiences that foster favorable attitudes toward being reliable, responsible, and cooperative.

Mr. Mohammed Imoro, a representative of the District Director of Education, called for transparency in the use of the fund, recommending that the Board be expanded to include representatives from traditional rulers and the District Education Office.

Dr. Krugu, however, expressed his gratitude for the excellent reaction and contributions received thus far, and highlighted the inauguration of the Board as a significant step toward the operationalization of the fund.