Samuel Kofi Agyemang
The Ghana Adventist Musicians has officially launched its welfare fund to assist both the young and aged members in their various developmental projects.
The fund, known as Ghana Adventist Musicians Welfare Fund (GAMWeF), aims to improve the living standards of members.
The launch of the welfare fund was held last Saturday at Apatankesee at the Centre for National Culture (CNC) in Kumasi, and it attracted a large number of stakeholders in the music industry as well as members of the Ghana Adventist Musicians.
The chairman of the Ghana Adventist Musicians Welfare Fund (GAMWeF), Samuel Kofi Agyemang, at the launch took the opportunity to give an insight on the objectives and the operations of the fund, which has been initiated to serve as a support system by generating revenue for the members who are ageing, for those who are disabled or have become incapacitated in their line of duty and for musicians who will be in dire need of assistance.
He indicated that the leadership of the fund has also laid down mechanisms to ensure that the fund is run effectively to ensure probity, transparency and accountability as well as the disbursement of the funds to beneficiaries.
He advised musicians to take savings as a priority during their younger and active years to ensure smooth life in their old age.
“I have seen most musicians who have enjoyed during their heydays but died like paupers, musicians who fell into critical illness and found it difficult to come out of it due to lack of funds, aged musicians who had no place to live and who could not afford even two square meals a day,” he said.
He said one of the aims of the fund is to subscribe to a group life insurance scheme which will cater for members in times of difficulties such as critical illness, accident, death, among others.
“Another very important objective is to encourage our members to subscribe to pension scheme which will help us save some funds during our heydays to be depended on in future when we are no more active,” he added.
He, therefore, took the opportunity to advise his colleague musicians to sign up for the welfare fund to ensure that their needs are met in a timely manner in times of difficulties.