MTN Ghana Foundation has announced it received over 1,000 entries for Season IV of MTN Heroes of Change.

The projects submitted have been screened and pruned to 100 by a panel of judges. The 100 nominations were shortlisted by the judges to 30 and this will be shortlisted further to 10.  Verification of the projects and nominees have just been completed.

The work of the 10 shortlisted finalists will be filmed and broadcasted as part of a 13-week TV series. At the end of the 13 week TV series, an awards event will be organised during which the ultimate winner will be announced.  

Selected winners for the categories of Health, Education and Economic Empowerment will be recognized with cash prize of GH₵30,000 each and a plaque. The grand award of GH₵100,000 will be given to the ultimate winner.

Season IV of MTN Heroes of Change will also see the addition of a special category which will reward two personalities for their contribution to society through their social projects and charitable causes.

The special categories are targeting media and entertainment personalities. The winners in this category will each also receive special awards which will be invested in any CSR project of their choice.

Commenting on Heroes of Change Season IV, Executive Secretary of the MTN Ghana Foundation, Robert Kuzoe, said, “MTN Heroes of Change is about celebrating ordinary people who by their efforts and contributions are making extraordinary contributions to improve the lives of   the vulnerable in society.” Through this initiative, we also want to motivate and encourage others to do same”.

The criteria for selection of projects are based on the following: the nominee should be engaged in an education project aimed at improving literacy and enabling members of the community to become agents of social change whilst the nominee for health  is required to be devoted to awareness creation and advocacy for the eradication of any identifiable health issue.

On economic empowerment, the nominee is required to be engaged in a project aimed at building the capacity of members of a community in order for them to become economically self-sufficient whilst enhancing their livelihoods.

MTN Heroes of Change was first launched in July 2013 with the aim of identifying and recognizing selfless people who continue to sacrifice their time and resources to improve their communities and brighten lives.  There have been three ultimate winners since the project was initiated.

MTN Heroes of Change has won several awards. The project was adjudged 2016 IPR Best Community Relations Programme of the Year and was also awarded CSR Program of the Year 2015 by the Head of State Awards (HoSA) Scheme.