Stanbic Bank Ghana has donated 50 laptops to underprivileged female students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST).

The donation forms part of the university’s Support One Needy Student with One Laptop (SONSOL) initiative.

The bank’s intervention is aimed at addressing gender barriers in STEM by equipping beneficiaries with tools to aid their research, assignments, and practical work.

This latest contribution brings Stanbic Bank’s total support for the SONSOL project to 300 laptops since the initiative began.

Investing in Female STEM Talent

Executive Head of Brand and Marketing at Stanbic Bank, Mawuko Afadzinu, revealed that the bank has invested more than $350,000 worth of laptops through the initiative.

He explained that beyond providing devices, Stanbic has instituted a mentorship programme to ensure the continuous career progression of beneficiaries.

“This is not conventional donations; this is a way of making a transformational impact in the lives of the most productive segment of our society. We want to find ways to impact lives in the right space and the right way. STEM for girls is very important to us due to the imbalance in terms of gender distribution when it comes to technology studies. The partnership with KNUST gives us the space to be able to do that,” he said.

“Aside from the laptop, we create a community for them to get support. They get mentors to guide them through their pursuits in science. We do that to create a dynamic pool of talent. It’s self-reinforcing. Because these girls will become significant operators of our economy,” he added.

KNUST Welcomes the Support

Vice-Chancellor of KNUST, Prof. Rita Akosua Dickson, commended the mentorship efforts, stressing that it would help female STEM students transition into industry.

“It’s important that they receive your support, especially from the industry captains, so that before they join you in the field, they have already settled in with some experience. Your training will get the education right, with the theoretical and practical,” she said.

Head of Public Sector Banking at Stanbic, Richard Kwabena Asare, also underscored the bank’s commitment to education as part of its social, economic, and environmental impact.

“We hold education dear. It’s part of our social, economic, and environmental impact. We realise that access to computers is a challenge that hinders education. And this intervention feels personal, and many students can identify with the channel. We believe that this support will help unlock and bring out innovation in the country,” he said.

Expanding Women in STEM

Stanbic Bank has also pledged to sponsor the Women in STEM (WiSTEM) initiative at KNUST to encourage greater female enrollment in science and technology fields. The partnership will operate under the banner Stanbic Bank Women in STEM.

Beneficiaries Speak Out

For many of the under-resourced students, the laptops have been life-changing.

“I had the opportunity to receive a laptop from Stanbic Bank in 2023, and in fact, it has really helped in my studies, assignments, and research work. The software programs we use really demand the usage of laptops,” said beneficiary Rosena Fosu Acheampong.