Empowering Local Talent: Bernice Asare’s Life-Changing Journey with Newmont

 

When Bernice Sarfo Kantaka from Adrobaa, one of Newmont’s host communities in Ahafo, completed her National Service in 2021, she worried about what would come next. After graduating with a Chemistry degree from KNUST, she completed her National Service with Newmont’s Land Access team at the Ahafo North Mine, but like many young graduates, she still faced uncertainty.

“I was anxious about being jobless after national service,” she recalls. “Most of my mates who completed university with me still don’t have jobs.”

As the eldest of five children, the pressure to secure a stable future was even greater.

That future began to change when she heard about Newmont’s Scalable Apprenticeship Programme. Encouraged by her community, she applied and successfully completed the competitive selection process.

Although unsure whether she could excel without an engineering background, her confidence grew once training began.

“The training started from the basics,” she said. “They took us through everything step by step.”

 

Over the next three years, Bernice and her cohort received intensive technical and practical instruction in Fixed Plant Mechanical, Electrical and Instrumentation, and Mobile Maintenance. The programme also helped her grow personally.

“Newmont has helped me to be more confident and speak up,” she said. “It’s an inclusive environment that gives everyone the opportunity to grow.”

Before completing the programme, Bernice received an offer to join Newmont Ahafo South mine’s Non Processing Infrastructure (NPI) team and now works as a Treatment Plant Operator.

“I was very excited when I received the offer letter,” she said. “It means I can take care of myself and support my family.”

She and her fellow apprentices will be earning Diplomas from the University of Mines and Technology (UMaT), strengthening their qualifications. On Tuesday, 24 February 2026, Bernice was among 10 apprentices who graduated from the programme, all 10 secured employment with Newmont.

 

According to Alex Kofi Annin, General Manager of the Ahafo South Mine, 97 percent of all apprentices trained to date have gained jobs with Newmont or its business partners, even though employment is not guaranteed.

Newmont invests over US$43,000 in each apprentice across the three-year programme, reflecting its commitment to building local capacity and creating sustainable economic opportunities in host communities.

Since beginning operations in 2006, Newmont, together with the Newmont Ahafo Development Foundation (NADeF), has supported more than 14,000 young people with scholarships and thousands more through training programmes, female top-up initiatives, graduate trainee placements, and the Local-Local Learnership Programme (3LP).

For Bernice, the journey is only the beginning. She plans to pursue an Engineering degree and later a Master’s, inspired to help close the gender gap she sees in the field.

“There are still not many women in engineering,” she said. “I want to continue studying and grow in this field.”

Her success already motivates her younger siblings to aim higher.

Reflecting on her experience, Bernice shared what the programme truly means to her:

“‘Creating Value and Improving Lives’ is not just a slogan. It has changed our lives forever. You have given us a platform to compete on a global stage, and for that we are eternally grateful.”