Mamfe Akuapem (E/R) Jan. 10, GNA - MTN Ghana, an international telecommunication company at the weekend donated GH¢3,000.00, assorted MT= N souvenirs and airtime worth GH¢500.00 to the Mamfe Traditional Council towards the celebration of this year's annual Ohum Festival. Mrs Naabea Asante, Mobile Money Implementation Senior Manager, MTN Ghana, who made the donation on behalf of the company announced that the corporate entity would also sponsor major activities of the festival celebration, including a grand durbar, community football match and a beaut= y pageant dubbed: 93Miss Ohum."

She said the festival, like other traditional events in Ghana, reminds the company of the achievements of 93our ancestors and this foster a feeli= ng of unity and the desire to work harder to improve upon our lives". Mrs Asante said MTN was particularly attracted by the unifying spirit that characterised the festival and draw people from all walks of life to Mamfe. "This creates an environment to build stronger relationships with ea= ch other, which is one of MTN's values as an African multinational," she s= aid. She thanked Nana Ansah Sasraku II, Mamfehene, for his unrelenting commitment to ensure that the education of children featured high on his agenda.

Mrs Asante recalled that last year, the Ohum festival was dedicated to the education of children in the community and said that commitment fell in line with MTN Foundation's core Corporate Social Responsibility. "MTN believes in developing the human resource base through educatio= n and has committed significant resources to this sector. "In the Eastern Region, the MTN Foundation is constructing a six-classroom block at Akyem Ntronang. At Asempaneye, we are also partnerin= g with Rotary club to construct a three-classroom block." She said MTN had been the single highest donor to the National Best Teachers' Awards celebration.

Mrs Asante said the company was also establishing 10 Information, Communication and Telecommunication centres across the country in collaboration with the UNDP. "The MTN Foundation has committed over $70,000 to improve numeracy an= d literacy in primary schools in Tamale under our Academy for Education Development project. Nana Sasraku on behalf his people thanked MTN for the gesture and appealed to other corporate organisations to emulate the kind gesture.