Absa Bank donates to the Street Academy

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By Emelia Nkrumah

Accra, July 10, GNA – The Absa Bank has donated items worth over GHS16,000 to The Street Academy in Accra, to support the upkeep of the pupils.

The items included bags of rice, cooking oil, toiletries, soft drinks, biscuits, sugar, and water, among others.

The Bank also donated bundles of school uniform materials to the school.

Mr Frederick Nyinaku, Chief Operating Officer, Absa Bank who made the donation on behalf of the bank said their main motive for the inclusion of the school uniform materials was to contribute to a more inclusive, equal, and supportive educational environment while addressing practical and financial challenges that some families may face.

“We included uniforms mainly because we believe that wearing school uniform creates some kind of pride within you being part of an institution,” he added.

According to him, the gesture was part of his outfit’s social responsibility and the relationship they have built with the school to support the pupils and build them up for the future over the past eight years.

“For the past eight years we have established a relationship with the Street Academy and the idea is that we want to support them and be part of their lives in terms of engagement and interaction and build them up for the future.

“We see them as children, but they are great people. They are the future lawyers, bankers, health workers, engineers, among others,” he added.

Mr Nyinaku said the food items would go a long way to feed the pupils, adding that “we believe that as a school, they feed the students twice a day and we wanted to be part of that.”

Addressing the extra curriculum, he said the bank was willing to support in the right direction, saying “we want to be part of the future of the pupils. We will always support in any way we can to support the Academy as well as the pupils.”

Mr Ataa Lartey, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of The Street Academy, thanked the Absa Bank for their support and appealed to other benevolent organisations to support the Academy.

He appealed to other philanthropists and stakeholders to support the Academy, which he maintained had taken hundreds of kids off the street over the years.

The Academy was established in 1986 by Ataa Lartey, a sports enthusiast and social worker, as a youth programme to tap talents in sports and cultural activities.

It is a three-year bridge programme preparing students for mainstream education, the public school system, and vocational training.

Committed to the most vulnerable children, the Street Academy is 100 per cent free, sponsoring books, uniforms, and two meals a day.

The Academy offers inclusive refuge for under-resourced and underprivileged children by providing an alternative school curriculum rooted in informal academic teachings, sports, music, art, and culture.