AL-Fattahu Foundation for Youth and Girl-Child Education launched
Sheikh Ibrahim (second from right), Prof. Emerita Takyiwaa (fourth from right) and Dr Chambas ((fifth from right) being assisted to hoist the foundation, Ghana and AU flags to mark the birth of the foundation
Al-Fattahu Foundation for Youth and Girl-Child Education (AFFYAGE) was launched on Saturday in Accra to promote access to quality education for the needy in society.
Al-Fattahu, an Arabic word which means opening of opportunities for all, seeks to discourage child and forced marriages, fostering sustainable development through formal education, vocational education, especially among marginalised communities.
The theme for the launch was: ‘Breaking the Barriers to Education for the Future Generation.’
Sheikh Hamid Mohammed Ibrahim, the Chief Executive Officer of Africana Guest House in Accra and founder of the foundation, made this declaration at the launch, saying that, “Under the constituted body and established instrument, the Africana Guest House shall serve as a Charitable Fund. I desire that proceeds be used during my lifetime and after my death, dedicated to funding and executing the aims and objectives of AFFYAGE.”
He said after retirement from the public service, he owed it a duty to plough back into society what God had made it possible for him to achieve in life and to support the needy to realise their potentials.
Among the dignitaries at the launch were Dr Mohammed Ibn Chambas, the African Union (AU) High Representative for Silencing the Guns, and Professor Emerita Takyiwaa Manuh of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Sheikh Ibrahim, a retired Foreign Service worker, underlined that there was the need to break all barriers impeding access to education by marginalised communities in order to ensure sustainable development, adding that “As a foundation, I desire that it never be gifted, inherited or sold, it shall be a crucial source promoting youth and girl-child education in Ghana.”
Launching the foundation, the Guest of Honour, Dr Ibn Chambas, who is also the Chairman of the AU High-Level Panel on the Resolution of the Conflict in Sudan, highlighted that the government must commit to increasing and stabilising investment in education, with deliberate focus on the most deprived regions.
Dr Ibn Chambas, a former Deputy Minister of Education (1997- 2000), said NGOs must be seen as integral partners in Ghana’s education drive, saying “their ability to innovate, mobilise communities, and reach where government could not, made them indispensable in breaking barriers to education.”
He commended the founder for “his modest contribution to education, particularly for the brilliant but needy, as it will go a long way to impact positively their future.”
Prof. Takyiwaa, the chairperson of the event, praised the founder on his vision for girl-child education, especially breaking barriers to access education and urged the members of the Board of the Foundation to live up to the task and make a change in the lives people.
Dr Haruna Zagoon-Sayeed, a Senior Lecturer at the University of Ghana and Executive Director of Baraka Policy Institute (BPI), expressed the need for holistic education to prepare the youth and the girl -child for the future.
Members of the Board of the Foundation are Ummu Zakaria, a Legal Practitioner; Sheikh Yahaya Sulemana Tuntuba, International Relations Expert; Dr Yunus Adam of BPI; Alhaji Teslim Kwashie Braimah; Ms Haniefa Korkoi Quaye; Chief Superintendent of Police (Rtd), Marufatu Essie Braimah; Abdul-Jabar Lantar; an IT Specialist; Ms Halimatu Oboshie Torto and Alhaj Issah Boateng of Accra Technical University.
Pix caption: Sheikh Ibrahim (second left), Prof. Emerita Takyiwaa (fourth left) and Dr Ibn Chambas ((fifth left) being assisted to hoist the Foundation, Ghana and AU flags at the forecourt of the Africana Guest House to mark the birth of the foundation
BY ALHAJI SALIFU ABDUL-RAHAMAN
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