Bonuses donated by Imagination staff will be used to provide tools and training for 100 unemployed youths in Ghana.

Events industry charity Meetings Industry Meeting Needs (MIMN) is funding the project via partner organisation Tools for Self Reliance, using nearly £1,500 of cash donated by the team behind Imagination’s UEFA European Champions League sponsor programmes.  

The annual internal award programme at global communications agency Imagination recognises the team that has best expressed the company’s core values – ‘insightful, inspiring, committed and collaborative’. The latest recipients, however, decided against spending the £1,500 cash prize on themselves, electing instead to put the money towards something they all could be proud of via MIMN.

The Ghana project is to address severe socio-economic disadvantage for 100 marginalised youths in the Tolon and Kumbungu districts of northern Ghana. By supporting vocational training and enterprise development in the rural non-farm economy, this project will help to create skills and opportunities and increase the sustainability of livelihoods though the creation of small artisan businesses. The project’s first phase has already begun.

During this second phase these 100 youth will receive five days additional training including how to work within cooperatives, improving productivity, customer service and design and finishing of products as well as micro-entrepreneurial and basic management skills. They will then be encouraged to form cooperatives in each of their rural home communities and each cooperative will receive a start-up kit of tools. In addition to providing peer support and enabling the sharing of scarce resources, the cooperatives will have access to a revolving credit fund. 

MIMN executive committee member Dave Hackett said: “I think this demonstrates how a small act of kindness and generosity can have a profound impact on the lives of a large number of people. We are very grateful to the team at Imagination who gave up their bonuses. They are an example to us all.”