Scene from the presentation ceremony
The Ageing Musicians Welfare Fund of the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA) has presented cash donations to 23 ageing musicians in the Ashanti Region as part of its programme of support to its members.
In an address, the First Vice-President of the Union, Bessa Simons, indicated that the donation was part of the Union’s support for ageing and incapacitated musicians and called on the current generation of musicians and corporate Ghana to support the fund to ensure that it grows to support more musicians as they age.
He further said the money distributed to the aged musicians was raised through the Ageing Musicians’ Welfare Fund which was established to improve the living standards of the aged musicians in the country who could not make ends meet, adding “MUSIGA has taken it upon itself to cater for the aged musicians in the country”.
On his part, the Secretary of AMWeF, J.V. Owusu, described AMWeF as a laudable initiative by the leadership of MUSIGA.
President Bice Osei Kuffour aka Obour said the fund has supported numerous ageing or incapacitated musicians since its inception in 2011 with his election as the MUSIGA President.
Some of the beneficiaries included octogenarians and septuagenarians such as Nana Yepemso, Kwaku Bona, Baafuor Kyei, and B.B. Collins, among others. One of the beneficiaries, Nana Yepemso, expressed his appreciation saying, “I am very grateful to the leadership of the Union for their continued support for our generation of musicians.”
The Ashanti Regional Chairperson, Augustine Addison, indicated that to augment the efforts of AMWeF, the leadership of the Union in the region has put in place initiatives to ensure that the ageing musicians in the region are adequately catered for.