September 24, 2019
By Frederick V. Kanneh
Gold Tree Company, which deals in oil palm fruit, has on Wednesday 19th September, awarded scholarship to 43 pupil in primary and secondary schools, as university students in the Upper Bambara Chiefdom,Kailahun District.
This ceremony took place at the Paramount Chief Member of Parliament’s compound in Pendembu town.
Before distributing the scholarship packages, the Out-Grower Manager of Gold Tree Company, Saffa Kosia, informed all present that the scholarship only covered students whose parents sold oil palm fruits to the Gold Tree company, adding that it was part of his company’s cooperate social responsibility and by extension a way of complementing President Bio’s dream of human capital investment.
He further disclosed that the quota for primary school pupils was Le 100,000, Junior Secondary School Le 150,000, Senior Secondary School Le180,000 and university Le650,000.
“My company has decided to give out a total of nine million two hundred thousand Leones (Le9, 200, 000) to 43 students in this chiefdom whose parents sell their palm fruits to our company in order to show how gratified we are for doing business with them. As a company, we always strive to build a win-win relationship with our farmers in our operational areas, hence the reason why we have taken this step for the upper Bambara Chiefdom,” he said.
He further advised the recipients to make good use of the opportunity and also encouraged their parents to continue selling their oil palm fruit to Gold Tree Company.
On his part, the Paramount Chief Member Of Parliament for the Kailahun District, Cyril Forah Gondoh II,expressed profound gratitude on behalf of the beneficiaries to the Gold Tree Company for what he described as a humanitarian move.
He disclosed that Gold Tree Company had always played significant role towards the development of the Upper Bambara Chiefdom, adding that the scholarship was just one of the many helping hands the company had given to the chiefdom.
He noted that Gold Tree Company had among other developmental aids, donated about 85 plastic chairs to the Pendembu Community hall, and had over the years been organizing skill trainings for youths in the chiefdom.
“Apart from the PCMP position, I am the Paramount Chief, the sole custodian of this chiefdom till I die, so my hands are always opened to any company or individual who is willing to give a face-lift to the Upper Bambara Chiefdom. Gold Tree Company, you have proven to be one of my partners in development over the years. I therefore thank you for considering my chiefdom for the scholarship, and I want to assure you that my doors are always opened to you,” he said.
The PCMP appealed to the Gold Tree Company to consider more university students, especially those offering degree programmes in next year’s scholarship scheme.
Meanwhile, farmers whose children received the scholarship expressed gratitude to Gold Tree and assured the company of their loyalties, adding that they were grateful to the PCMP Gondoh who made sure the scholarships were distributed in a transparent manner.