Impacting our community: the inspiring story of Hakim

March 9, 2019 10:28 AM

Stanbic Bank Ghana partnered Ghana's Embassy in China in 2018 to send 12 gifted pupils under 17 years to China on a cultural exchange programme as part of Stanbic Bank Ghana's I GO CHINA/ I GO GHANA project. In selecting participants special consideration was given to brilliant but financially handicapped children. A minimum quota was reserved for this category. Abdul Hakim Aremeyaw a brilliant pupil of the Police A and C Custer of Schools at Airport qualified through this route.

Abdul Hakim Aremeyaw

Hakim story was a compelling one. Even on the streets his brilliance shone to the event that a group of benefactors who saw him doing odd jobs at the Opeibea Traffic light assumed responsibility for his education and upkeep. They got a place for him, put him in school and assigned him a guardian, who was engaged for permission before Hakim's trip to China and he since been in regular touch.

Hakim spent two weeks in China as his prize. Upon his return, Hakim has been visiting staff who have taken to him. The CSR team at Stanbic have been checking on Hakim periodically both at his school which is right behind the Stanbic Heights building, and with his guardian.

Stanbic Ghana also engaged its partners SOS Village for the possibility of Hakim being taken in the SOS for care and education and has secured space in the premier institution for Hakim. He would be taken in after consultation and approval by his guardian. Hakim would then become one of the children that the bank supports in the two homes it maintains with SOS.

The story of Hakim has spurred on staff of the bank to adopt children in similar situations. A model is being concluded to enable Stanbic Bank Staff ' adopt' and take up the support of as many of such children from the VAG village and in Airport area, as possible.

Alhassan Andani, CE of Stanbic bank has offered Hakim a scholarship to realise his dream of becoming a pilot.

Broadening the conversation, Alhassan Andani said, “there are many Hakims that this country must make good therefore we at Stanbic would like to initiate a study to get to the bottom of the problem of Streetism. We are by this setting aside GHS50,000 as seed capital for the study”, he said.