Sky News Gh
A former financial secretary for St. Louis College of Education and an advocate for gender equity, Nathlaine Matilda Marfo who recently won the TTAG Covid-19 challenge has undertaken a project to help basic school students who are idle due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
In an exclusive interview with TWJ on her project, the former financial secretary and chaplain for TTAG-ASHBA said her innovative ideas were mainly concerned about basic school students hence her decision to come up with a skill training program such as soap making, beads making among others to reduce students from roaming around in this Covid-19 time.
“In my innovative idea for the TTAG Covid 19 challenge, I was mainly concerned about the basic school students thus, from Basic I to JHS 3, but now the question was after school what next? We can’t just watch these students roam around till January 2021 when they will start the SHS journey, so I decided to come up with this skill training program for JHS leavers to help them acquire skills that will enable them to earn some money as they await their results. The training program focused on how to use beads for beautiful key holders, how to prepare liquid soap, local hygienic solo, and fresh Yohurt was careful about selecting these things because they are items that can be started with less than The 40 and so it is expected that, our target group will be able to start their own business with a small start. This initiative, T believe will keep them engaged during their
period of awaiting results and also keep them out of social vices and teenage pregnancy as they can make their own money by working with the skills.” she said.
In our quest to find her source of finance for the said project, she disclosed that the project was funded by the honorarium she received from T-TEL after she won the TTAG Covid-19 challenge. She again added that the project was an extension of the TTAG Covid-19 challenge.
“I will say this is an extension of the TTAG Covid-19 idea. During the research program for the challenge, I came across a lot of issues in our communities and I think this is away I can also help as an activist. To be honest, this program was funded by the honorarium I received from Ttel for winning the Covid 19 challenge.
She assured me that there are more such projects to come and she’s aiming at extending the project to the Senior High School.
“There’s still more to come. There are plans to extend this project to SHS leavers as well and even communities with vulnerable people who need employment if we get enough sponsorship”.
She expressed gratitude to her former SRC executives and the former financial secretary of Offinso College of Education, Gideon Mensah who was supportive of her project.
Sky News Gh