General Electric (GE), an American multinational corporation, on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding with the authorities of University of Ghana (UG) to provide a $100,000 scholarship scheme to needy but brilliant students to access tertiary education.

The scholarship facility is expected to cover the four-year period of academic and other relevant fees of 25 to 50 bright students from less endowed communities or schools across the country.

Signing on behalf of the UG, Pro-Vice Chancellor, Professor Kwame Offei, said in the next four years, part of the fund would be committed to support the brilliant but needy students while the rest would go into awarding distinguished students.

“The architecture of the financial aid programme will have 80 per cent of the funds committed to support brilliant but needy students in the applied sciences and the remaining 20 percent going to an annual excellence award for students who will distinguish themselves in relevant disciplines,” he said.

He said the University often looks at creative ways to enhance services to students as well as those who might not be able to go through their programme successfully without financial assistance.

He said authorities have initiated talks with the GE to develop a framework for the partnership to build capacity for the corporation’s oil and gas business sector.

The two have identified financial aid programme for students in relevant areas that would build Ghana’s capacity in oil and gas fields and the identification of relevant academic or professional disciplines where short courses could be organised for the benefit of GE staff and other staff in the oil and gas.

Mr Leslie Nelso, Managing Director of GE, Ghana, said the gesture affirmed GE’s commitment to develop human capital and localising its operations in the country.

He said the company is looking forward to discover and nurture talents and build capacity of the labour force to spur up social and economic growth of the country.

Mr Nelson said training; building skills and technology transfer are key ingredients of the company’s localisation strategy in Ghana saying: “Our localisation plan also includes technology collaboration, development of Ghanaian suppliers and investment in human capacity,” he said.

GE supports economic growth through infrastructure development especially in the power, healthcare and transport sectors as well as oil and gas.