Akorfa Ama Akoto speaks at 2025 NUGS International Women’s Day Conference
For the 2025 International Women’s Day, Akorfa Ama Akoto was at Pentecost University for the International Women’s Day Conference organized by the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) in collaboration with Pentecost University SRC for the International Women’s Day Conference. The conference was organized under the theme, Celebrating Resilience and Empowering the Next Generation of Women. Akorfa Ama Akoto joined other women leaders including Naana the Vilonist, Health Activist and Executive Director of Miss Health Ghana, Rockson Akyere; Chairperson, SDTA Awards and IYN UN Special Envoy West Africa, Amb Hon Zino Lexli Ogazi, and 2022 Ghana’s Most Beautiful Winner, Tung-Teiya Dahamani for a Peer Inspired Panel Discussion Session. During the Peer Inspired Panel Discussion Session themed, “Stronger Together: The Power of Women’s Allyship and Support”, Akorfa Ama Akoto shared some key principles that have helped in her journey as Executive Director of Spring-UP Global Network: Congratulations to the National Union of Ghana Students (NUGS) – Office of the Secretary for Women Development for organising this conference.
Spring-UP Global Network Hosts ‘Mentor Me’ Seminar on International Day of Education
As part of this year’s International Day of Education, Spring-UP Global Network (SUGN), led by Executive Director Akorfa Ama Akoto, organised a mentorship and career guidance seminar dubbed ‘Mentor Me’ with students of the Agbekotsekpo D/A Basic School on Thursday, January 23rd, 2025. The programme, ‘Mentor Me,’ provided a platform for mentors to impart wisdom, share experiences, and guide learners to make the right career choice. SUGN volunteers shared insights on emerging 21st-century career pathways in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and the Creative Arts. The guest speaker for the seminar, Mrs Ivana Amponsah from the HUD Group Global shared insights on career guidance, purpose discovery, and mastery. This was followed by a panel discussion featuring young professionals studying and working in various STEM careers who volunteer with SUGN. A total of 80 students, including Primary 6 and Junior High School students, attended the event. The seminar provided tools to shape the mindsets, behaviours, and decision-making abilities of the children regarding their future careers. With funding from Nana Churcher Multimedia, the SUGN team donated exercise books and learning supplies, ensuring that students have the essential tools to succeed in their educational journey. In today’s rapidly evolving world, STEM education is pivotal for innovation, driving economic growth, and opening doors to future career opportunities. Early exposure to STEM subjects fosters critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving skills, preparing children for the challenges of the future. Career guidance plays a crucial role in helping students make informed decisions, reducing anxiety, and aligning their strengths with future opportunities. Hence, the need for programmes like ‘Mentor Me’ in shaping the next generation of leaders. In all, 80 learners at Agbekotsekpo D/A Basic School benefitted from the Mentorship and Career Guidance seminar.
SUGN, Ideas & Books, Global Shapers Accra Donate 1,000 books to Adabraka Cluster of Schools
The Adabraka Cluster of Schools has received one thousand (1,000) books through a partnership between Spring-UP Global Network, Ideas and Books and Global Shapers Accra, Hub. The donation done on Friday 18th August 2023, is part of an initiative dubbed ‘Literacy Advocacy’ aimed at making books and literacy resources accessible to children in under-served communities and schools. The books were received by the headteachers of the school led by Madam Brenda Attuquayefio, the School Improvement Support Officer (SISO). According to the SISO, the books will support teaching and learning in the five schools that belong to the Adabraka Cluster of Schools. Presenting the books to the school, the Executive Director of Spring-UP Global Network, Akorfa Ama Akoto admonished the school to make the best use of the books to improve their reading and writing skills. Also present was the Founder of Ideas & Books, Ernest Tsifodze.
Nana Churcher Multimedia and Spring-UP Global Network Partner to Provide Mentoring and Career Guidance to Children
Enhancing Opportunities for Children in Orphanages, Struggling and Single-Parent Families to Enroll in Higher Education Nana Churcher Multimedia Limited announced on Saturday November 29, that it will partner with Spring-UP Global Network to provide conducive and secure learning environments through the provision of school supplies, career guidance and mentorship, to contribute to the achievement of the fourth goal of the United Nations Sustainable Goal: quality education for all. The programs sponsored by Nana Churcher Multimedia Limited will focus on the provision of career guidance and mentorship and donation of school supplies to children in selected schools in underserved and hard-to-reach communities in Ghana. Furthermore, Nana Churcher Multimedia will support SUGN’s annual Literacy Festival including awarding excelling students and supporting selected children on Field Trips, as well as donating gifts to children during an annual Christmas party. During the partnership launch, Nana Churcher mentioned, “Mentoring supports children achieve more success and we are very happy to come on board as donors and sponsors with Spring-UP Global Network to create a future of unending opportunities for several children across Africa, through providing school supplies, in addition to identifying, grooming and managing juvenile talents in acting in schools, orphanages, and struggling and single-parent families”. Akorfa Ama Akoto, Founder and President of Spring-UP Global Network, said “SUGN is re-imagining education by providing conducive learning environments to children in deprived communities. This partnership will give us the springboard to create brighter opportunities for many more children in underserved communities in Ghana. SUGN’s expertise and track record in providing conducive and secure learning environments complements Nana Churcher Multimedia’s vision of making quality education accessible to all children while identifying, grooming and managing juvenile talents in acting across Africa. According to a research by Child Trends, “all children need caring adults in their lives and mentoring programs can be effective tools for enhancing the positive development of youth. Consequently, mentored youth are likely to have fewer absences from school, better attitudes towards school, better chance of going on to higher education and improve young person’s perception of their worth.” With the limited number of positive role models for children especially for at-risk children, children from poor, struggling and often single-parent families, there is an urgent need for the involvement of caring and concerned tertiary students and business professionals to provide support, mentoring and career guidance to children, thereby helping children to become successful adults. ABOUT SPRING-UP GLOBAL NETWORK The Spring-UP Global Network (SUGN), a youth-led not-for-profit is a network of tertiary students and business professionals working to nurture the reading and writing skills of children in addition to the provision of mentoring and career guidance to create a brighter future for children in orphanages and hard-to-reach schools in Ghana. Visit SUGN’s website to learn more about SUGN and its impact story: www.springupglobalnetwork.org ABOUT NANA CHURCHER MULTIMEDIA Nana Churcher Multimedia Limited is a UK registered firm whose focus areas span across talent management, event planning and management, corporate emceeing and public speaking services. Over the last ten (10) years, their leading service, the Nana Churcher Show has amplified and celebrated the stories of people and places across the globe. The founder, Nana Churcher is an international talk show host. Her own show, “The Nana Churcher Show” – Nana Churcher Live and Nana Churcher with an audience- is a unique platform for encouraging excellence and spreading positivity. Her positive mindset, phenomenal attitude and charisma draws and empowers, bringing the best out of people. Nana Churcher travels the world telling stories of those she interviews as an inspiration to those who watch her show. With her signature “You Belong at the Top,” she aspires to help others discover and develop their God-given brilliance. She currently resides in London, with her husband, Pastor Alfred Churcher, and their four children.
Deloitte WorldClass program in Ghana: Spring-UP Global Network gets $55,000 to help make libraries accessible to over 35,000 children
Making libraries accessible to over 35,000 children by 2030 Accra,22nd September 2022: Deloitte today announced the launch of its global initiative ‘WorldClass’ in Ghana, which aims to refurbish and restock eight libraries in rural and deprived basic schools. The initiative is aimed at positively impacting over 30,000 children by 2030. Globally, Deloitte’s WorldClass initiative seeks to prepare 100 million people to be better prepared for the future of work, in line with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) four (4) which ensures inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. By collaborating with stakeholders across sectors, Deloitte aims to make a meaningful impact on issues that are critical to societal success. In Ghana, Deloitte has identified Spring-UP Global Network, a youth-led not-for-profit, working to bridge the literacy gap between children in rural and urban Ghana, as a partner to realize its WorldClass purpose. This partnership will see Deloitte and Spring-UP Global Network renovate and refurbish eight (8) school libraries, making secure and conducive school libraries accessible to over 30,000 children in Ghana. As an add-on incentive and intervention, the partnership will also launch Reading and Writing clubs in the beneficiary primary and Junior High Schools in Ghana. In addition, the staff of Deloitte Ghana will collectively invest over 1000 hours to participate in reading and mentorship sessions for students in the first year of the program. Commenting on the launch of WorldClass in Ghana, Daniel Kwadwo Owusu, Country Managing Partner of Deloitte Ghana said, “Our goal with WorldClass in Africa is to empower 20 million people by 2030, by providing them access to the education and skills required to find meaningful work in the new economy. A 2022 report by the World Bank has revealed that 7 in 10 of all children in low-and-middle-income countries cannot read and understand a simple text by age 10. As a result, children without strong foundational literacy skills are less likely to gain the technical skills needed to succeed in society. For this reason, Deloitte Ghana as part of our 75th Anniversary celebrations has decided to work with Spring Up Global Network to refurbish and restock eight libraries in deprived schools across the country. With the advent of the industry 4.0 wave, the world is poised for a seismic shift, and to survive in it, we must cooperate to ensure that no one is left behind. We see this initiative as a tremendous opportunity to make a meaningful impact and create pathways for our future leaders to fulfill their aspirations.” Speaking at the occasion, Founder & CEO, Spring-UP Global Network, Akorfa Ama Akoto said, “According to the 2020 MICS-EAGLE Ghana Education Fact Sheet by UNICEF, 52 percent of children who do not have foundational reading skills come from the country’s poor regions. With inadequate resources and poor facilities in rural schools contributing to poor academic performance, there is an urgent need to improve literacy rates in rural communities in Ghana. From providing schools with modern libraries to nurturing the reading and writing skills of children, at Spring-UP Global Network, we have a dream to make education and mentorship accessible to all children so as not to increase the already existing literacy gap between the rich and poor. This is why we are super excited to receive support from Deloitte’s WorldClass to provide libraries for over 30,000 children The Library Project- iRead iLead Campaign The iRead iLead Campaign is a 10-year strategic educational programme launched in January 2020 by Spring-UP Global Network which includes the iRead iLead Library Project and the iRead iLead Literacy Programme. The iRead iLead Library Project focuses on renovating and building new libraries in rural and deprived schools in Ghana, while the iRead iLead Literacy Programme is focused on establishing Reading and Writing Clubs in schools to build the literacy capacity of children in rural communities. Starting in October 2022, eight (8) libraries will be refurbished and restocked for eight (8) cluster of schools impacting a minimum of 16,000 lives in the first year across the Greater Accra, Eastern, Central, Ashanti, Volta and Oti regions. About Deloitte WorldClass WorldClass is Deloitte’s organisation-wide global initiative, which seeks to prepare 100 million futures for a world of opportunity by 2030. This bold ambition exemplifies how we live our Purpose, making an impact that matters, by addressing global challenges in society. By aligning around a common goal and mission, Deloitte is inspiring increased commitment and investment in education, skills development, and access to opportunity. We aim to deliver this by: Focusing our core skills, experience, and global reach to prepare and empower more people to take advantage of the rapidly changing world economy. Using our capabilities to enable educators and businesses to deliver the skills individuals need to meet future job demands; and Creating simple solutions, facilitating collaborations with corporates and government institutions, aligning with local schools and not-for-profit organisations, and amplifying the existing efforts of various organisations. Deloitte’s WorldClass program in Ghana will focus on refurbishing and restocking eight libraries in rural and deprived basic schools to nurture tomorrow’s future leaders through reading. By engaging in long-term partnership with Spring Up Global Network which is working to bridge the literacy gap between children in rural and urban Ghana, we aim to impact 30,000 children by 2030. About Deloitte Deloitte is a leading global provider of audit and assurance, consulting, financial advisory, risk advisory, tax, and related services. With 175 + years of hard work and commitment to making a real difference, our organization has grown in scale and diversity—approximately 400,000 people in 150 countries and territories, providing these services—yet our shared culture remains the same. In Ghana, 2022 marks the 75th anniversary of making an impact that matters. The Ghanaian firm of Deloitte has a long history in the country, dating back to when it was originally formed by Mr. James Donald Barnes CA Scotland on 1 January 1947, under the name and style of J. D. Barnes & Co. Chartered Accountants.
Spring-UP Global Network nominated as Best Volunteer Group of the Year
Spring-UP Global Network (SUGN) has been nominated as the Best Volunteer Group of the Year in the 2022 edition of the Humanitarian Awards Global. This is SUGN’s second nomination since the inception of the awards. The organizers of the Awards made this announcement to the public in a publication on 2nd May, 2022. SUGN is a network of youth mentors advancing basic quality education in orphanages and hard-to-reach schools in rural communities in Ghana. With current membership of 17 Youth Mentors and Educators, SUGN is a not-for-profit on a mission to connect Tertiary students and Business professionals to provide mentorship and career guidance to basic school and secondary school students living in deprived communities in Ghana. In addition, SUGN is nurturing the reading and writing skills of children, by providing school libraries in deprived schools. Since 2019, SUGN has provided teaching and learning materials to seven (7) schools and orphanages in Central, Ashanti, Volta and the Greater Accra Regions of Ghana and has impacted a total of 2425 beneficiaries through 13 projects. SUGN embarks on projects namely: 1. iRead iLead Campaign 2. Mentor Me 3. Back to School Drive 4. Jaa Ojoormo (Christmas party with children) The first library under the NGO’s iRead iLead Campaign was refurbished at Yevi D/A Basic School in the Volta Region. Stocked with over 400 books, the library is serving the 300 primary and Junior High School students in the school. Work on the refurbished library started in January 2020 and was commissioned on Friday, 5 February 2021. SUGN also donated exercise books and facemasks to help promote safe learning in the school. Agbekotsekpo D/A Basic School located in the Shai-Osudoku District of the Greater Accra Region is the second school to benefit from SUGN’s iRead iLead Campaign with the renovated modern school library serving the 328 children in the school. A Reading and Writing Club was also launched when the library was inaugurated on 31st March, 2022. Dubbed ‘Celebrating Change Makers’, the organizers of the award said “the annual awards ceremony aims to recognize change makers, NGOs, SDG advocates, volunteer leaders, donors, organizations, philanthropists, corporations, and professionals who drive the important work of the charity forward every day.” Voting ends on 31st July, and the awards ceremony will be held on 27th August, 2022, at the Labadi Beach Hotel in Accra. To vote for Spring-UP Global Network, dial *800*1111# and choose the nominee code 3581 or visit
Spring-UP Global Network provides mentorship and career guidance for students of Ayeduase R/C JHS
Spring-UP Global Network (SUGN) is a network of youth mentors advancing basic quality education in orphanages and hard-to-reach schools in rural communities in Ghana. SUGN is on a mission to connect Tertiary students and Business professionals to provide mentorship and career guidance to basic school and secondary school students living in deprived communities in Ghana. In addition, we’re nurturing the reading and writing skills of children, one school library at a time. “Mentor Me” is a unique mentorship programme that provides an opportunity for SUGN volunteers to engage students in primary and selected schools on selected career guidance and mentorship topics. The first “Mentor Me” for this year was held on Thursday, 2nd June, 2022, benefitting the over 180 Junior High School students of the Ayeduase R/C JHS in the Ashanti region. The topic for this mentorship and career guidance session was: “21st century career opportunities; what are they and how do you prepare to explore them?” Substance abuse, menstrual health education and the need to develop positive attitude towards learning were also discussed. The programme included an educational talk, a mentor-mentee breakout session and some games. The Project Lead for this “Mentor Me” program, Mr Godwin Adablah, gave an educational talk on the main topic. Using his personal experience as an example, he shared with students how fast the world of work is evolving and what they could start doing now to be relevant. After, the educational talk was the Mentor-Mentee breakout session. Here, students were grouped into smaller teams with one SUGN volunteer leading the group. During the Mentor-Mentee breakout session, students and SUGN volunteers dialogued on topics including good learning habits, drug and substance abuse, as well as menstrual health education to mark World Menstrual Health Day observed on 28th May. It was indeed a wonderful and fruitful mentorship and career guidance program. SUGN is especially grateful to Mr. Joseph Suglo, headmaster of Ayeduase R/C JHS, for the opportunity to have this year’s first Mentor Me with his students. We are equally grateful to Madam Emelia Antwi, a teacher, for her inputs in making the mentorship a success.
Spring-UP Global Network inaugurates the Agbekotsekpo D/A School Library
Spring-UP Global Network (SUGN), a network of young persons committed to promoting literacy and empowering disadvantaged children has inaugurated the Agbekotsekpo D/A Basic School Library on 31st March, 2022. The school library is a product of the NGO’s flagship programme dubbed the iRead iLead Campaign. Launched in January 2020, the campaign is a 10-year strategic educational campaign providing school libraries in deprived communities. Agbekotsekpo D/A Basic School located in the Shai-Osudoku District of the Greater Accra Region is the second school to benefit from the NGO’s iRead iLead Campaign. Formerly, an abandoned headteacher’s office turned storeroom, the room was renovated into a modern school library and is serving the 328 children in the school. Volunteers of Spring-UP Global Network, the Shai-Osudoku District Director of Education, Deputy Director of Education, rector of Education, Deputy Director of Education, SISOs, Community Leaders, Parents, Teachers and Students, this library was inaugurated on 31st March, 2022. A reading club was also launched. Headed by the Assistant Headteacher of the school, three teachers have been assigned as caretakers of the library and reading club. Over 60 per cent of the total financial expenses of the Agbekotsekpo D/A School library was funded by an anonymous donor while additional cash donations were received from SUGN volunteers and the general public. Earlier on 5th February, 2021, the first library under the campaign was refurbished at Yevi D/A Basic School in the Volta Region and is serving the 300 primary and Junior High School students in the school. In addition to providing school libraries and nurturing the reading habits of children through the iRead iLead Campaign, the network also provides career and mentorship programs to children in rural Ghana. Through the iRead iLead Campaign, SUGN is nurturing readers and leaders, one school library at a time.
SPEECH BY AKORFA AMA AKOTO, PRESIDENT OF SPRING-UP GLOBAL NETWORK AT THE INAUGURATION OF THE RENOVATED AGBEKOTSEKPO D/A BASIC SCHOOL LIBRARY ON 31ST MARCH, 2022.
SPEECH BY AKORFA AMA AKOTO, PRESIDENT OF SPRING-UP GLOBAL NETWORK AT THE INAUGURATION OF THE RENOVATED AGBEKOTSEKPO D/A BASIC SCHOOL LIBRARY ON 31ST MARCH, 2022. Mr. Chairman The District Director of Education, Madam Harriet Lomotey The Head Teacher, Mr. Joseph Danso Parents Teacher Association Chiefs Community Leaders and Members Members of Spring-UP Global Network Donors and Partners of Spring-UP Global Network Teachers Students Parents Invited Guests Ladies and Gentlemen All Other Protocols Duly Observed Good Morning! It feels so great to be here as we open the Agbekotsekpo D/A Basic School Library renovated by Spring-UP Global Network, a not-for-profit organization promoting literacy and empowering disadvantaged children since it was established in 2019. I want to warmly welcome you all to today’s inauguration, especially the Shai-Osudoku District Director of Education, Madam Harriet Lomotey for taking time off her busy schedule to join us today. Once again, you are all warmly welcome. Mr. Chairman, since 2019, SUGN has provided teaching and learning materials to seven (7) schools and orphanages in Central, Ashanti, Volta and the Greater Accra Regions of Ghana and has impacted a total of 2425 beneficiaries through 13 projects and 4 flagship programmes namely: 1. iRead iLead Campaign 2. Mentor Me 3. Back to School Drive 4. Jaa Ojoormo (Share Your Blessings – End of Year Christmas Party with Children) As a network of young persons committed to promoting literacy and empowering disadvantaged children by providing mentorship and career guidance and creating secure and conducive quality learning environments, we launched the iRead iLead Campaign in January 2020. The iRead iLead Campaign is a 10-year strategic educational programme to improve literacy and encourage children to read. As part of our iRead iLead Campaign, we partner with schools each year to refurbish their school library. The school provides the empty room for the library project while as an organisation, we refurbish the space to a modern library for the school. The programme also includes a literacy programme where a reading club is established in the beneficiary school, with literacy events organised in partnership with the beneficiary school. Since the launch of the campaign in January 2020, SUGN has refurbished 2 school libraries. The first was commissioned in February 2021 in Yevi D/A Basic School located in the Volta Region. Agbekotsekpo D/A Basic School is privileged to be the second school to benefit from our iRead iLead Campaign. Before I continue, let me remind us all of how we started this success story. In November 2021, we sent out a call for schools willing to have us renovate their school library. Our main criteria for selection was a school with a classroom space they were willing to make available to be refurbished into a modern school library. The school must also have one or two teachers who will coordinate the project and also coordinate the reading club to be launched through this programme. After a few days, we received a number of applications from schools. After weeks of a rigorous school selection process, our school selection team settled on Agbekotsekpo D/A Basic School. However, after our first visit, we were met with a few challenges including the transportation challenge to the school and the need for an intense ceiling work for the library which took a huge chunk of our initial budget. Although the past four months of work on this library project came with a number of challenges, we are all here today because we overcame all the challenges. At this point, I want to commend one special donor from Italy who supported this project with 64% of the total financial expenses. Special appreciation goes to the headteacher Mr. Joseph Danso, the 2021/2023 Lead for Ghana Fellows stationed at this school, the carpenter, painter and electrician whose suggestions, technical assistance and time have made this project a success. Permit me to also commend members of Spring-UP Global Network whose commitment and support over the past 3 years has brought us this far. In December 2021, the Government of Ghana through the Ministry of Education embarked on the first ever National Standardised Test (NST) for primary 4 pupils across all public schools in the country. According to the Ministry of Education, the NST which was taken in literacy and numeracy will help generate data on the performance of pupils in English Language and Mathematics. As an NGO working in the education sector, we believe that making libraries available and accessible to children is a key step to improving literacy and supporting the Government’s efforts in bridging learning poverty in schools. Because of the school library and the reading club to be launched today, I am confident that in the next NST to be taken by primary 2, 4, and 6 students, our students from Agbekotsekpo D/A Basic School will record improved performances in Literacy and Mathematics. Earlier this year, Spring-UP Global Network was privileged to attend a stakeholder meeting between the Ministry of Education and NGOs working in the education sector. The Minister for Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum commended NGOs for the key role they play in supporting the Ministry of Education to address the learning gaps. Through this project, we are glad that we are augmenting the efforts of the Government to promote literacy and address learning gaps. During one of my visits to the school, the Headteacher, Mr Danso explained how literacy in English forms the bedrock on which an excellent academic performance in all other subjects is built and I am excited that through the provision of this school library and the reading club, we will build and improve literacy levels in this school. Our main aim for embarking on this project is to improve literacy rates in primary and Junior High Schools, however, we are glad that through this project, we provided job avenues for artisans from this community who worked on the project including the carpenter, painter and the electrician. Before I conclude, once again, join me say Ayekoo to our donors and partners, members of
Mentoring Children: Why I led volunteers at Spring-UP Global Network to donate School Supplies to Students in Chorkor
At the beginning of each academic year, parents and guardians are faced with the responsibility of providing new school supplies for children. Children who live under the care of their parents, look up to their parents to provide for them. But what happens to the over 200 children who live at the Great James Academy, an orphanage and school complex that caters for orphans and street-connected children, located in Chorkor in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana? How does the manager of the school who relies on the benevolence of philanthropists adequately provide school supplies for the over 200 children he is willingly catering for? After visiting and having a Christmas party with the children at the Great James Academy on 27th December 2021, the team of volunteers identified the educational needs of the academy. So on Friday 28th January 2022, I led volunteers from Spring-Up Global Network to donate school supplies to the over 200 students at the Great James Academy in Chorkor to aid teaching and learning in the school. After sharing tips on ‘Self-Esteem and Proper Planning to excel in studies’, Spring-Up Global Network Volunteer Youth Mentors further engaged the children through the ‘Akensie’; a Ghanaian game designed for people to learn more about the history and culture of Ghana. On behalf of all volunteers at Spring-Up Global Network, I am sincerely grateful to all our donors. Because of you, over 200 children have enough supply of teaching and learning materials for one academic year. Later this year, we will provide career guidance and mentorship sessions in the orphanage that doubles as a school. Spring-Up Global Network is open to partnership with individuals, corporate organizations and agencies who aim to improve basic quality education in orphanages and hard-to-reach areas.
