MTN Monthly Newsletter

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Issue 8 | October/November, 2013

Koo Ntakra wins MTN Hitmaker Season 2

MTN Monthly Issue 8 | October/November, 2013

EDITORIAL BOARDConsulting EditorCynthia Lumor

Deputy EditorsKen Ofosuhene

The Production TeamEfua FalconerAfua Serwaa BoatengSheila SorinyeCharity Darko

Creative DirectorEli Kpodo

Send all feedback, contributions, comments, and questions to the editor : [email protected]

Welcome Note from EditorY’ello Everyone!!

Another eventful and exciting month has ended and we are so thrilled to give you all the details of what happened in the months of October and November.

The past two months have been full of successes and rewarding activities and MTN is always grateful to its cherished customers for patronizing its programs and continuing to show their loyalty and support. At MTN, we believe that our customers are the key reasons for our existence, our efforts and our success.

Over the past two months, MTN Ghana’s excellence in human re-source and investment in developing its employees’ potentials was recognized. The network won the award for Overall Best Organiza-tion in Human Resource Practice in Ghana at the maiden Ghana HR Conference and Excellence Awards. MTN is tremendously grateful to all its zealous working force who contributed to making this happen. In addition, we were adjudged the ICT Company of the Year at the AGI Awards Event.

All too soon, your favourite talent hunt TV show, MTN Hitmaker Sea-son 2 is over and Koo Ntakra has emerged the overall best amongst the four finalists. Find out more about the thrilling final event as you read this month’s newsletter.

Our commitment to bringing smiles and happiness to all our cus-tomers and their families continues, and this is why this month MTN introduced three brand new innovative services: MTN ‘Ntosoɔ’, MTN Magic Voice and MTN Send Money Home.

We hope that reading all these interesting details would be a delight for you. Do keep your feedback coming in.

Georgina Asare [email protected]

IN THIS ISSUE

• MTN Human Resource Excellence• MTN wins ICT Company of the Year • Koo Ntakra wins MTN Hitmaker Finale• ‘MTN launches the ‘Ntoso�’Promo

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MTN sets standard in Human Resource ManagementIt is said that a country’s most critical resource is its human resource base. The case for the continuous development of a country’s resource is as pronounced as it has ever been. As Ghana accelerates its efforts to develop a critical mass of human resource in order to fully exploit the country’s rich natural resources, corporate Ghana appears to be well ahead of the curve.

A talented and well aligned workforce is crucial for bringing a company’s strategy to life and ensuring that the organisation delivers on its objectives. As Sir Richard Branson, chief executive and founder of Virgin Group, puts it: “A company’s employees are its greatest asset and your people are your product.” A company must pride itself in the excellent performance of its employees and provide the necessary environment to sustain and develop them. For organisa-tions to thrive, the best output must be obtained from their labour force, as it is the employees who serve as the nerve centre of the organisation.

Other areas critical to the success of any service providing company are its customers and the product or service it provides. The concepts of customer service, product quality and employee performance are interrelated. When employees provide excellent customer service, they exceed their job expectations. However, the popularity of the company’s service or product is based, in part, on the level of service its customers receive. This underscores the fact that employees’ perfor-mance in this area is critical to business success. An organization’s human capital is paramount in helping it to achieve its goals and objectives.One company that has enjoyed the benefits of a strong workforce is MTN Ghana, the country’s leading telecommunications network. MTN‘s ranks are made up of management and staff who tirelessly contribute to the company’s leadership within the telecommunications industry.

In a keenly competitive industry such as Ghana’s telecom sector, MTN has placed its confidence in the power of its human resource to deliver on its social con-tract to the close to 12 million subscribers. This confidence drives MTN to place the development of its employees high on its list of priorities, matched only by its investment in sound technology to stay clear ahead of the competition. MTN Ghana currently employs over 1,600 direct staff across the country and also creates jobs for over 500,000 persons through its supply chain. This has gone a long way to address Ghana’s unemployment challenges. In line with its employee value proposition and its belief in sharing and nurturing talents as a contribu-tion to Ghana’s human resource development, MTN recently organized a career fair for young job seekers in Ghana. This was aimed at equipping the youth with the tools necessary for them to tackle the challenges of a dynamic corporate world and an increasingly competitive job market.

MTN’s leadership in human resource and investment in developing its employees’ potentials has even been recognized by external bodies. This commitment garnered the network the award for Overall Best Organization in Human Resource Practice in Ghana at the maiden Ghana HR Conference and Excellence Awards recently. The telecommunications leader received the award after passing all the criteria for selection. This criteria was based on standards of best HR practice and required that the winning organization posses a demonstrated history and evidence of first-rate HR management. The standards include General HR practices, adherence to Human Resource Management Philosophy, Strategic HR Management, HR Function Visibility and HR Practices Documentation, all areas in which MTN has excelled.

At MTN, employees are afforded the opportunity to explore their talents and capabilities to the fullest. Constant training and various skills upgrading programmes are organized to equip and sharpen their skills in order to ensure that they provide cutting edge services to MTN’s millions of subscribers in the country and be-yond. The comprehensive development programmes extended to MTN’s employees have made it easy to reassign them to different markets, where they always stand out.

This month, MTN Ghana Sales and Distribution Executive (SDE) Ebenezer Asante was assigned to MTN Rwanda as the new Chief Executive Officer. The current MTN Uganda (SDE), Shaibu Haruna, worked on Ebenezer Asante’s team at MTN Ghana for years before his appointment to MTN Uganda. There are also the likes of Sakyi Opoku who is the Senior Marketing Manager of Rwanda and Clement Asante who is the Chief Marketing Officer at MTN Liberia, both of who worked in Ghana for years, chalking tremendous success during their tenures.

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MTN is best ICT company of the yearMTN Ghana, on Saturday 23rd November, was adjudged the best Information Communication Technology (ICT) Company of the Year at the Asso-ciation of Ghana Industries (AGI) Awards ceremony. The awards ceremony which took place at the banquet hall of the state house is the second to be organized by the Association after the maiden event held last year.

Receiving the award on behalf of the organization, MTN‘s Corporate Communications Manager, Miss Efua Falconer, thanked the organizers of the awards as well as the members of AGI for their recognition of MTN’s leading role in the ICT industry. She said, “MTN will continue in its quest to use the latest in ICT solutions in achieving its vision of leading the delivery of bold new digital world to its subscribers”.MTN Ghana, in leading the delivery of bold new digital world to its subscribers has initiated various innovations to improve data quality and usage amongst its customers. Currently, whiles tests are ongoing in some regions to deliver the 42 Mbp data speed experience, others have already began enjoying the experience.

Earlier in November, MTN Foundation was recognized by the Young Professionals and Youth Coalition Initiative for its support towards youth devel-opment and empowerment, transforming raw skills into productive ventures for increased socio-economic development in the country.MTN continuous to be at the forefront of advancing youth development in the country through various initiatives such as the MTN Hitmaker Reality Show, the MTN Soccer Academy Reality Show, the MTN Apps Challenge, among others.

The AGI Awards is a national event aimed at recognizing industries that have distinguished themselves in their respective sectors. It is also meant to provide a platform to help define the highest standards of excellence in business.

Earlier this year, at the beginning of October, one of MTN’s finest, young Ghanaian engineers, Ing Mrs. Louisa Ama Sosu, was appointed Vice Chair of the ITU Quality of Service Development group (QSDG) at its meeting, hosted by the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications in Accra. Louisa, the network quality and reporting manager at MTN Ghana, was assigned to the position by delegates at the meeting. For MTN, having a staff member on the board of one of the highest international Telecommunication regulatory groups representing Ghana in the international sphere is a tremendous source of pride. It is achievements such as these which prove the high caliber of MTN staff, a result of continuous training and development.

Customer satisfaction remains a top priority to MTN Ghana and this informs the company’s focus on developing team members’ business acumen, industry knowledge and depth of current best practices in all areas of customer management. At MTN, one of the core values is to work to maintain and contribute to a sustainable socioeconomic environment. The network understands that no organization can succeed if the market base it relies on lacks the necessary health and educational facilities. This is the reason the organization founded the MTN Foundation, which is made up of distinguished personalities who believe in the values of the foundation. Since its inception in 2007, the Foundation has made broad community impact and supported national and international development prior-ities in the areas of health, education and economic empowerment, contributing significantly to the overall development of the nation’s human capital resource.

MTN has made it this far because of its wonderful team members. The nation’s leading telecommunication company is in the business of making people happy and it is important that its employees’ skillsets reflect that. MTN Ghana promises not to rest on its oars but to continue using innovative strategies to provide in-novative products and services to its subscribers while exhibiting best HR practices to remain the industry’s standard bearer.

Efua Falconer, Corporate Communications Manager, MTN Ghana recieving the Award

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MTN Ghana has launched a new promotion dubbed ‘MTN Ntoso� Promo ’.This promotion is an instant bonus recharge offer that delivers bonus (in minutes) for on net voice calls aimed at rewarding subscribers.

The Bonus on Recharge offer is designed to deliver value to MTN’s subscribers when they recharge their account anytime any day. The offer is open to all ‘Pay as you go’ (PAYG) subscribers with tenure above 6months.

MTN subscribers across Ghana will enjoy this offer any time they recharge their accounts. Once a customer recharges his or her account, he or she enjoys the bonus in minutes with a validity period lasting between one to three days. This means these bonus minutes must be used within a day to three days. Customers who recharge between GH¢1 and GH¢5 can use their bonus in a day, whilst customers who recharge above GH¢5 will enjoy their bonus within 3 days.

Commenting on the launch, MTN Ghana Chief Marketing Officer, Mr. Rahul De said, “With continual research we have gained further understanding and insight into what brings more value to our customers. We are excited to reward our subscribers instantly with the bonus on recharge offer”. We believe that MTN Bonus on recharge which is instant will make our customers lives a whole lot brighter, he said.

The bonus on recharge promotion is open to customers who have subscribed to both MTN Just for you and Family and Friends.This promotion is applicable to all recharges both vouchers and electronic i.e. EVD (Electronic Voucher Distribution) recharges.

MTN Ntoso� Instant Bonus on Recharge Promotion Launched

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‘Send Money Home’ with MTN

Exciting Data Offer for MTN customers on Samsung Galaxy Note IIIIn leading the delivery of a bold new digital world to its customers, MTN Ghana has partnered with Samsung to provide exciting bun-dles on the new Samsung Galaxy Note 3. Subscribers who buy the Samsung Note 3 from any MTN service cen-tre or outlet will receive 2.5GB data every month for 3months as well as souvenirs from MTN.The Chief Marketing Officer of MTN, Mr. Rahul De, said the partner-ship with Samsung creates another opportunity to make data avail-able to smart devices and that the network looks forward to making internet connectivity more enjoyable for users of the Samsung Gal-axy Note 3. Mr. Rahul De added that “since MTN launched the 3.5G technolo-gy, there have been countless initiatives to increase access to data compatible devices as well as to promote use of data services on our

network. Some of the devices include modems, handsets, laptops and notebooks.”MTN is also set to provide various data offers in partnership with oth-er cell phone manufacturers, such as TECHNO Mobile Huawei and Nokia. MTN subscribers are also encouraged to use data services that include the “Money Back” offer under which MTN returns the full val-ue of the device purchased to customers in voice and data usage for 1 year.MTN is certain that due to the current network rollout initiative and upgrade of its network, subscribers using these smart devices will enjoy high speed data services.Users of the Galaxy Note 3 must text “MTN” to short code 151 to ac-cess the free data offer.

MTN Ghana has launched its ‘Send Money Home’ campaign to edu-cate Ghanaians on the most secure and convenient way of transfer-ring money, the MTN Mobile Money service. The campaign includes a short television series publicizing the myriad of services available on the platform. There will also be service demonstrations for cus-tomers at MTN service centres, merchants’ shops and partner bank branches across the country.

Commercial Senior Manager of MTN Mobile Money, Mr. Eli Hini, said that the majority of Ghanaians send money to their families and friends through means that sometimes raise issues of security and trust. Recently, MTN partnered with Lycamoney to launch a new re-mittance corridor where subscribers can receive money sent from the UK through MTN Mobile Money. Mobile Money customers can withdraw money from their digital wallets through any Fidelity Bank ATM. Currently, over 600,000 Ghanaians actively use MTN Mobile Money for electronic money transfer.

The remittance corridor will enable Lycamoney Card users to send money instantly and cost effectively to their relatives and friends us-ing MTN Mobile Money services anywhere in Ghana. According to parties to the deal, the HomeSend remittance hub is the key enabler for the remittance transactions.

HomeSend is a strategic business partnership between BICS and eS-ervGlobal which allows the real-time transfer of any type of funds, such as airtime or money, and from various fund sources, such as eWallets, bank accounts, credit cards and cash.

MTN Mobile Money customers in Ghana will now have the oppor-tunity to have international remittances from family and friends in-stantly transferred directly to their wallets, thereby giving them im-mediate access to their money wherever they are in Ghana.

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Koo Ntakra Moves the NationAfter 13 weeks of intense competition, the MTN Hitmaker reality show has come to an end and 20-year-old Koo Ntakra Akuffo from the Eastern region emerged as the winner.Koo Ntakra beat three other talented hopefuls, Cano Z, Kofi Korea and K Bee to win the mouthwatering prize of an artiste management deal worth GH¢100,000.

The grand finale which was hosted at the Accra International Confer-ence Centre (AICC) on Friday 25th October 2013 saw many talented performances from the four finalists as well as electrifying perfor-mances from the guest performers. Contestants thrilled the audience and judges with their performanc-es through all three rounds of the finale. Judges expressed satisfac-tion and comments of impression by the thrilling delivery by the contestants.

After the performances, Koo Ntakra, the son of a banku seller, was adjudged the best of the four finalists, while Cano Z came second. Cano Z walked home with a management deal worth GH¢50, 000. Kofi Korea and K Bee came third and fourth respectively.Other awards given out on the night included Best Dressed perform-er which went to K-Bee and the Best Engineer award which Decoder picked up.

The performing artists for the night rocked the Conference Centre with a procession of dynamic selections. Those who ascended the stage included MTN Hitmaker season one winner Naterial, hiplife ar-tiste Guru, Nigerian music star Iyanya, Trozo and Paradise Entertain-ment new dance-hall act AK Songstress. Region), Savannafest (for the three Northern Regions) and Ashanti-fest (Ashanti Region) which earned MTN the CIMG Brand Activation award for the year.

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6Koo Ntakra performing for the night

MTN Hitmaker winner and some members of staff of MTN and his family

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MTN Ghana has donated an amount of GH¢ 3,000.00 towards the successful celebration of this year’s “Kobine” Festival of the Chiefs and people of Lawra Traditional Area in the Upper West Region. The pack-age included GH¢ 500.00 worth of airtime, a drink hamper also worth GH¢ 500.00 and assorted MTN souvenirs.

Presenting the cheque and items in Lawra to the Paramount Chief of the Lawra Traditional Area, Naa Edward Puowele Karbo III, MTN Senior Commercial Manager in charge of the Northern Business Dis-trict, Mr. Samuel Sarpong, said the gesture was a demonstration of MTN’s commitment towards the celebration of the Festival.

Mr. Sarpong described the theme for the festival, “Reducing Poverty through Science and Technology in Agriculture”, as appropriate since agriculture was the backbone of Ghana’s economy. He observed that people could no longer rely solely on traditional methods such as predicting the rainfall pattern to plan their farming activities. It was therefore appropriate for them to reassess the methods applied in order to adopt best practices that would make agriculture an attrac-tive and lucrative venture for the citizenry.

Mr. Sarpong announced that the MTN Farm Direct Service on mobile phone provided farmers with up-to-date information on farming and agricultural extension services, and appealed to farmers to sub-scribe in order to benefit from the service.

Naa Karbo thanked MTN for supporting the festival for the fourth time, adding that the support was not only consistent but also kept on increasing both in quantum and variety.

MTN supported the organisation of the grand durbar of the chiefs and people of Lawra Traditional Area. The highlight of the grand durbar was the finals of the dance competition among traditional dance groups.

MTN Ghana brightens Kobine Festival

Other activities included a bicycle race in which a 57 year old man participated. The three winners of the bicycle race took home a bi-cycle each, with a Buzanga Volvo bicycle going to the overall winner. There was also a football gala, with eight teams from the traditional area participating. The Lawra Health Training School Football Club defeated the Sparrows FC of Lawra with a 2-1 win to claim the covet-ed trophy and cash price. The street carnival also saw performances from local artistes, including the regional winner of MTN Hitmaker, and Jacques Meder, an artist from Burkina Faso.

MTN, through the MTN Ghana Foundation, has so far invested over GH¢13 million in development projects countrywide, out of which GH¢ 284.000.00 has been spent on projects in the Upper West Re-gion alone.

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Mr. Samuel Sarpong, MTN Senior Commercial Manager for the Northern Business District presenting the items to the Naa Edward Puowele Karbo III, Paramount Chief of the Lawra traditional area.

Exciting Activities During Yellow Twin City Festival MTN Ghana in the month of October celebrated its annual TwinCi-ty Festival with the people of Sekondi-Takoradi. The month-long ac-tivities which started from 1st October and ended on 31st October 2013 saw eight major customer focus initiatives being undertaken by MTN.

The celebration forms part of MTN’s nationwide annual and regional customer engagement initiatives.

As part of the activities, MTN Commissioned a hospital block at Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital, a Regional Library at Sekondi as well as a School block at Ahantaman SHS.

There was also a Corporate Fair where different organizations in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis were invited to demonstrate their prod-ucts and services. A Data Clinic was also organised to engage MTN Retailers and other trade partners.

Other activities include: a Trade Partner Engagement; Retailers & Mobile Money Engagement Programs; Customer Delight Activities where customers were served by Regional Leadership; and the MTN

Sports and Musical Festival which featured Dancehall artist Kaakie and Samini.

Speaking at the launch, MTN Regional Senior Manager for the South-West Business District, Mr. Abubakar Ibrahim Mohammed, in his opening address disclosed that his outfit always creates appropriate platforms to effectively engage subscribers. He expressed his grati-tude to MTN’s cherished customers for their belief in the brand as the network of choice and their consistent feedback which has informed MTN’s activities.

Mr. Mohammed further indicated that the TwinCity Fest had been developed to celebrate customers in Sekondi-Takoradi and the West-ern Region as a whole, in order to bring the company much closer to its subscribers.

TwinCity Fest is one of several regional festivals across the country designed by MTN to acknowledge and promote the rich culture of the communities in which the company operates. Other MTN region-al festivals include Koftownfest (Eastern Region), Ashantifest (Ashanti Region), and Savannafest (for the three Northern Regions).

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Training session at the MTN Sports Festival

Abubakar Mohammed, Regional Senior manager, MTN leading the Trade Forum

MTN Committed to Promotion of GolfThis year’s 5th MTN Invitational Golf Tournament took place at the serene Tafo Golf Club Course in the Eastern Region, on Saturday 16th Novem-ber, 2013.

The 18-hole golf sports festival offered MTN and its CEO Serame Taukobong the opportunity to engage golf lovers who also constitute decision makers of the business community for their loyalty to the MTN brand throughout the year.For MTN, the objective of holding this year’s tournament in Tafo was to offer MTN Business and CEO the opportunity to engage some of its most prestigious customers and enterprises in Tafo and its environs.

This year, 22 year old Vincent Atila who recently completed Accra Poly defied all odds to emerge winner of the Men’s Scratch Category A. After being presented with a brand new Nokia phone and souvenirs from MTN, Atila urged the youth to take up golf as a pastime because “it keeps one fit and offers the opportunity to meet people of high standing.”

Cynthia Nyantekyi topped the Ladies Category Scratch A, beating Mary Crombell for the top spot. In the Women’s Category B event, the experi-enced Cynthia Awuni triumphed over the younger Captan and others to take the top prize.

The CEO of MTN Ghana, Mr. Serame Taukobong, was experiencing the Invitational Golf event for the very first time. He congratulated all the par-ticipants, winners and media for coming to the green Tafo Golf Course to participate. He noted that MTN is committed to supporting commu-nities and that the network bringing the competition to Tafo is an expression of that. Mr. Taukobong mentioned that MTN was ready to support activities that are economically viable to the company. According to Taukobong, MTN evaluates the economic viability of such programmes and commits to those that effectively project the image of the company in addition to benefiting the communities in which they take place.

Present at the event were industry leaders like Prince Kofi Amoabeng, CEO of UT Bank, CEO of MTN Serame Taukabong, and Frank Adu Jnr., MD of CAL Bank among others.

An improvement on what Takoradi hosted last year, this year’s event was a joint collaboration between MTN and Nokia.

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Scenes from CEO’s invitational Golf ournamentCEO of MTN Ghana, Mr. Serame Taukobong waits for his turn

2013 Asogli Yam festival was celebrated with a colorful display of the rich culture and heritage of the Asogli State on 21st September 2013. The festival, which coincided with the 10th Anniversary Celebration of the installation of Togbe Afede XIV as the Agbogbomefia of Asogli State, saw the demonstration of the unique cultural heritage of the Asogli state at the durbar ground.

As one of the key sponsors of this year’s Asogli Yam festival, MTN Ghana organised various activities such as MTN Football Gala and Chill Zone to provide entertainment for the over thousand patrons who had traveled from far and wide to celebrate the festival. The football gala involved eight competing teams from within the Asogli State area. After a penalty shoot-out’ with the Asogli team, the Depot team triumphed, winning a coveted trophy of GH¢ 400.00 and MTN souvenirs.

MTN Ghana also supported the festival activities with the organization of a durbar of Chiefs and people of Asogli State at the Ho Sports Stadium. The highlight of the grand durbar was the display of rich and colourful Kente cloth which adorned the traditional rulers and people at the durbar grounds. MTN added to the beauty of the traditional colour display with the provision of its Y’ello canopies and tear-drop flags.

In addition to supporting the durbar, MTN further added to the excitement of the Asogli Yam festival with the famous MTN Chill Zone entertainment events with performances by local musical artists such as Edodzi, Hector and ‘247’. The energy and excitement from the performance kept patrons dancing into the wee hours of the morning.

Prior to the celebration, MTN made a donation to the Asogli Traditional Council to support its activities. The network’s donation included a cheque of GHc5,000.00, MTN recharge vouchers worth GHc1000.00, a drinks hamper and MTN souvenirs. The items were received by the Paramount Chief Kpenoe, Togbe Kotoku XI and members of the festival planning committee.

Presenting the items to the chiefs and elders of the Asogli State, MTN Mobile Money Implementation Manager of South East Business District, Mr. Peter Bimpeh, expressed his excitement about the relationship that has existed between the Asogli State and MTN Ghana. He also used the oppor-tunity to formally congratulate Togbe Afede XIV on his 10th Anniversary as the Agbogbomefia of Asogli State.

In his response, Togbe Kotoku XI thanked MTN on behalf of the Asogli Traditional Council for the kind gesture. He expressed the hope that the donations would go a long way to support the community and that the relation between the two entities would develop further in the coming years. Togbe Kotoku XI also urged MTN to expand its support to include the building of a school to commemorate Togbe Afede’s 10th Anniversary celebration.

A colourful Yellow Asogli Yam Festival

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Mr. Peter Bimpeh, Mobile Money Implementation Manager, South East Business District of MTN presenting the items to Asogli Traditional Council

MTN improves computer literacy in the Ayawaso Sub-Metro AreaIn support of several initiatives being made to bridge the digital gap in Ghana, MTN Ghana Foundation has inaugurated a 40-seater ICT Centre at the Nima cluster of schools at a cost of GH¢70,800.

The centre will serve a population of about 1,120 students from Nima and 25 others schools in the circuit from the Ayawaso Sub-metro.Mrs. Cynthia Lumor, Executive Director of MTN Ghana Foundation, said MTN has accomplished another milestone on its vision to deliver a new digital world to its customers. Like many children across the country, Mrs. Lumor said, the children of Nima would now have the opportunity to take advantage of the full benefits of ICT.

Mrs. Lumor stated that, as a diverse set of technological tools and resources, ICT has countless benefits for extending educational op-portunities for students and teachers as well as parents.

Using the newly inaugurated ICT centre, students in Nima now have

the capability to move beyond the limitations of printed books and other materials to remotely access a wealth of learning materials on diverse topics in e-libraries all over the globe.

Mrs. Lumor said that MTN appreciates the potential for ICT to sup-port improvements in literacy, numeracy and science. “This is why the MTN Ghana Foundation has found it necessary to provide fund-ing to build robust ICT infrastructure and equip Ghanaians with ICT skills to enable us bridge the digital divide and foster the country’s development in all sectors,” She said.

In her remarks, Mrs. Lumor expressed the hope that the ICT centre would be the basis for improving computer literacy among all users in the Nima cluster of schools and contribute to the general level of academic excellence in the Ayawaso Sub-metro and other beneficia-ry communities.

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Mrs Cynthia Lumor, Executive Director of MTN Ghana Foundation delivering a speech at the Commissioning Ceremony at Nima

Mr. Joshua Mallet Director of Center for National Distance Learning and Open School,inspecting the children as they work with the computers

Mrs Cynthia Lumor Executive Director of MTN Ghana Foundation with some of the pupils operating the computers in the ICT Centre.

MTN Ghana works towards achieving Universal Primary Education in Upper East RegionMTN Ghana sponsored a Spelling Bee Challenge on Thursday 24th October 2013 for pupils in sixteen selected schools in the Upper East Region. The competition, which was keenly contested by pupils of the schools, was organized with the goal of sharpening the intellects of the pupils.

According to Portfolio Advisor of MTN Ghana, Northern Territory, Mr. Abdulahi Hussein Yahya, since MTN’s partnership with the Spelling Bee Chal-lenge, the network has supported students from deprived communities in the competition. Mr. Yahya indicated that MTN had partnered with the Young Educators Foundation in the spelling bee competition in order to enhance confidence in the pupils.

MTN Ghana Foundation, he said, “is committing a total amount of sixty four thousand cedis (64,000.00) as our contribution towards this project. We hope our support in this area will help Ghana in attaining the Millennium Development Goals 2 & 8, that is to achieve universal primary education and develop a global partnership for development by 2015.”

The six best spellers to represent the region at the national level are Apania Latifa of Saint Clement Primary School, Atinga Solomon of Anowaam Primary School, Tufailu Shakira of Straight-Way Educational Complex. The rest are Ayamga Bright, Musah Rahaman and Awumbila Seth, all of the Fountain Gate International School. At the end of the competition, the six best spellers took home exercise and note books, MTN branded T-shirts and products from Indomie, organizers of the program.

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MTN supports school building projects in Ashanti RegionA joint donation from Ashcell Limited, dealers in Mobile Telecom-munication Network (MTN) products and MTN Ghana Sales Business Unit have been made in the Ashanti Region. Two communities Of-finso and Nhyiaeso Old Town, have taken delivery of building mate-rials including bags of cement, bundles of roofing sheets and quarry chippings in support of the completion of self-help projects.

Offinso’s share of 20 bags of cement, two bundles of roofing sheets and a “Wifi” internet facility was meant to help make conditions at the State “A” Junior High School (JHS) more academic friendly.

The other beneficiary community, Nhyiaeso, received equal number of cement bags and roofing sheets in addition to quarry chippings to complete a public washroom project.

Mr Jerry Otchi, Corporate Services Executive of Ashcell, said the gesture was in line with MTN Foundation’s core values of promot-ing good education and quality health care. He advised the school children to make good use of the internet facility to enhance their academic performance.

Mr. Dominic Nketia, the head teacher, said they were grateful for the donation and that the cement and roofing sheets would aid urgent repairs on the school’s classroom structure.

The Chief of Nhyiaeso, Nana Osei Yaw Frimpong II, commended MTN Ghana for promptly responding to the appeal made to it by the com-munity.

MTN, Ashcell Officials present building materials to beneficiaries.

MTN contributes to Quality Education by constructing new classroom block for Kintampo CommunityMTN Ghana has provided a six unit classroom block with a value of GHC 244,391.00, for Dr Saunders Community Basic School at Kintam-po.

The block consists of a head teacher’s office, an office, an information and communication technology centre and a store.

The project which is a gift from MTN Ghana is aimed at improving quality education. Mr James Bukari Basintale, Northern Business Dis-trict Manager of MTN, said MTN will continue to partner with gov-ernment to create the right environment for effective teaching and learning in schools. He further explained that parents should take

advantage of the additional classroom space to increase child enrol-ment. Mr Basintale took the opportunity to encourage the students to study hard, saying they should take responsibility of their own fu-ture.Stakeholders in education, including government, teachers, parents and communities are making sacrifices to provide opportunities for children to pursue academic careers, he said.

With a population of 1,330 pupils, MTN’s project has brought a big sigh of relief to the situation where teachers and pupils were forced to hold classes under trees.

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A cross section of pupils and MTN officials in newly constructed classroom block

MTN Spearheads Impactful CSR Initia-tives at Akropong School for The Blind MTN Ghana Foundation has commissioned a 20-seater ICT Centre and presented a 33-seater bus valued at GHC 216,000.00 to the Akro-pong School for the Blind.

The ICT Centre will serve as a computer training centre for more than 500 students of Akropong School for the Blind. The gesture of sup-port aims to help bridge the digital divide with regards to visually impaired students in the country. The facility will equip students with ICT skills and help improve general academic work through research work and online activities. The 33-seater bus will help alleviate the transportation challenges being faced by the school.

Last year, MTN Ghana presented a one storey boys dormitory com-prising 16 rooms and an office to the school, in fulfilment of its com-mitment to equip the school with a one-storey boys’ dormitory, a 20-seater ICT centre and a 33-seater bus over a three-year period at a total cost of GH¢566,000.

Speaking during the school’s maiden Speech and Prize-giving Day to commission the project and present the bus to the school, Mrs Cynthia Lumor, Executive Director of MTN Ghana Foundation, stated that, “ICT has become the driving force for development and innova-tion across the globe.” Ms. Lumor described ICT as “a critical tool for students and teachers across the country, hence the need to support them to reap its benefits.”

After cutting the tape to commission the ICT center, the guest of honour for the occasion, Mrs Lordina Mahama, First Lady of the Re-public of Ghana, commended MTN for this great initiative.

Dignitaries present at the ceremony included Prince Kofi Amoabeng of UT Group, chairman for the ceremony, Eastern Regional Minister, Hon. Hellen Adoa Ntoso, and MCE for Akuapim North Hon. Opare Addo.

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A photo of 33 seater bus presented to Akropong School for the Blind

An inside view of the 20 seater ICT Center for the Akropong School for the BlindCynthia Lumor (right) Corporate Services Executive MTN Ghana with Ghana’s First Lady, Laudina Mahama during the commissioning.

UMAT gets new ICT LabSametro Company Limited, a Distributor of MTN Ghana, has donated 20 desktop computers, three in one monochrome photocopier, MTN Wireless Router and a 10KVA Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) to the Geometric Department of the University of Mines and Technol-ogy for the establishment of Geometric Information System (GIS) re-mote sensor and Geospatial analysis lab worth GHC 39,150.00 at the University premises, Tarkwa.

Mr Emmanuel Owodoo Kwaansah, Operations Manager of Sametro Company Limited in his address was sure that the fulfillment of its corporate social responsibility would help the University to develop and improve its ICT research to serve as the backbone in teaching, curriculum development and innovation.

He disclosed that this year his outfit has renovated an eight class-room block at Methodist JHS and a three classroom block at John Taylor JHS all at Tarkwa and would continue to support the commu-nities where it operates.

MTN’s Regional Senior Manager for the South-West Business District, Mr. Abubakar Mohammed, in his remarks lauded the Distributor for such gesture since such projects are to improve the lives of the peo-ple.

Professor Jerry Samuel Kuma, Vice Chancellor of the University of Mines and Technology receiving the items on behalf of the University was grateful to the Sametro Company for helping to let their dream which they conceived ten years ago come true. He was optimistic that with their professional lecturers, the laboratory would be main-tained for posterity.

Other educational projects MTN has embarked on in the Western Re-gion include the construction of a 3unit classrooms block, office and store at Sefwi Abono, construction of a 6unit classroom block, office and store at Ahantaman SHS, Takoradi, Rehabilitation of the Western Regional Library and installation of a 20 seater ICT facility, Sekondi and the construction of a 20 seater ICT Center at Esiama.

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Cynthia Lumor (right) Corporate Services Executive MTN Ghana with Ghana’s First Lady, Laudina Mahama during the commissioning.

PHOTO GALLERY

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Miss Efua Falconer, MTN’s Corproate Communications Manager received the ICT company of the year award on behalf of the organisation

K Bee performing his gosple song like no one’s business

Cynthia Lumor (right) Corporate Services Executive MTN Ghana with Ghana’s First Lady, Laudina Mahama during the commissioning of a 20-seater ICT Centre and a 33-seater bus to the Akropong School for the Blind.

Mr. Sarame Taukobong taking his turn on the Tafo Golf Club Course

MTN Team receiving HR Excellence Award MTN Team posing with the HR Execellence Award

K Bee performing his gosple song like no one’s business

Koo Ntakra in an exceptional performance Koo Ntakra performing for the night

Canon Z’s grand entry to make his first performance for the night

Kofi Korea at his best performance Koo Ntakra and mother shedding tears of joy

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