MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Citi Foundation Donates $2m to 7 Initiatives for Financial Education, Capacity Building in India

The Citi Foundation, the charitable arm of US-based financial services provider Citigroup that promotes financial inclusion and other initiatives, recently announced that it has issued the first disbursement from its “Innovation Grant Program”[1] with the aim of increasing its impact in India. The grants total INR 114 million (USD 1.95 million) benefitting seven initiatives run by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that promote financial education and the capacity building of clients of the NGOs. In additional to providing funding, the Citi Foundation will cooperate with the selected NGOs to “track results”[1] and “support replication”[1] of successful initiatives. It is anticipated that the initiatives will benefit 580,000 individuals residing in India.

Mr Pramit Jhaveri, the chief executive officer of Citi India, said that the “Innovation Grant Program is a fresh approach to encourage NGOs to develop new and innovative financial education and inclusion programs that are scalable and replicable”[1].

From a pool of 31 applicants, Citi selected the following: the American India Foundation Trust, a New York-based organization that aims to eradicate poverty in India; the Grameen Foundation, a nonprofit based in the US city of Washington DC that supports rural entrepreneurship and telecommunications; MelJol, a Mumbai-based organization that provides social services and financial education to children from low-income families in India; the Navya Disha Charity Foundation, a Bangalore-based organization that supports education; the Parinaam Foundation, a Bengaluru-based organization that supports underprivileged women in 20 states in India; the Pratham Education Foundation, an organization with offices in Delhi and Mumbai that aims to improve the quality of education in India; and Swadhaar FinAccess, a Mumbai-based nonprofit that supports financial inclusion and financial education.

With the new grant money, the American India Foundation Trust will conduct “technology-enabled financial education”[1] to 12,000 children in 200 schools in Delhi and the states of Orissa and Punjab. Grameen Foundation will aim to deliver financial education via mobile phones to female borrowers of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in the state of Uttar Pradesh. MelJol will provide financial and social education to 28,000 individuals – including school children, orphans, mothers and self-help group members – in order to support the organization’s savings and entrepreneurship programs entitled “Aflatoun” and “Aflateen”[1]. The Navya Disha Charity Foundation will support a mobile school called “Buzz”[1] to deliver financial education to approximately 3,000 women in the state of Karnataka. The Parinaam Foundation will use the grant to scale-up its financial literacy program entitled “Diksha”[1], aiming to reach 52,000 low-income women in the country. The Pratham Education Foundation will offer financial training to 3,700 young individuals in its training centers in nine states in the country. Swadhaar FinAccess will offer digital financial education and counseling to 7,500 individuals.

During 2013, the Citi Foundation disbursed grants with A total value of USD 78 million.

By Alíz Crowley, Research Associate

About Citi Foundation

Citi Foundation is the charitable arm of US-based financial services provider Citigroup. The Citi Foundation provides grants and guarantees focusing on the areas of microfinance, small and growing businesses, education, asset building and neighborhood revitalization. The foundation’s annual giving was USD 78 million in 2013.

Sources and Additional Resources

[1] Citi Foundation, Citi Foundation Grants INR114 Million to Expand Financial Education and Capability

MicroCapital, August 13, 2013, Applications Open for Citi Foundation’s Indian Micro Enterprise Awards 2013

MicroCapital, June 12, 2013, Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Co-operatives, Habitat for Humanity Thailand, Citi Foundation Launch “Microsavings Program for Home Improvement”

MicroCapital, March 15, 2013, Women’s World Banking (WWB), Citi Foundation Launch Women in Leadership Program

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