Newmont Africa has signed a GH¢ 1.7 million Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Otumfuo Osei Tutu II Foundation to implement two key education-focused projects over the next three years.

The projects will promote and extend information communication technology (ICT) education and training to less resourced communities through the provision of infrastructure, materials, and associated resources.

The projects in particular, seek to improve the reading culture among pupils in these communities, and also build their interest and capacity in ICT.

Newmont Africa and the Otumfuo Foundation intend to achieve the above objectives through the remodelling and furnishing of six, 50-person capacity containers, to be situated in selected schools. Mobile training camps equipped with computers shall also be set up in schools to further the training of pupils in ICT.

The Regional Senior Vice President of Newmont Africa, David Thornton, said Newmont Africa was working to extend the positive social impacts of its business in Ghana beyond its host communities and into other areas where critical educational infrastructure, particularly in ICT, was lacking.

"It is quite clear to us that ICT will play a key role in an increasingly digitised world, and equipping pupils with the requisite skills will help create a more promising future for them and their families," he said.

The chairman of the Otumfuo Foundation, Nana Prof. Oheneba Boachie-Adjei Woahene II, commended Newmont Africa for its support to the Foundation over the years, adding: "for almost a decade, Newmont Africa has been a consistent ally of the Foundation, having provided support in excess of GH¢ 1 million over the period for several of the Foundation's programmes and projects.

The MoU, according to him, was a clear demonstration of the commitment of our two entities towards the identification and implementation of meaningful interventions for communities and individuals who are, otherwise, disadvantaged by virtue of their circumstances."