Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (DTTL) announced Pratham USA is the recipient of a $250,000 grant as part of the Deloitte21 Challenge. Deloitte21 is a Deloitte organization-wide global initiative aimed at helping underserved young people acquire the education and skills needed to thrive in the 21st-century economy.  Punit Renjen, Chairman of Deloitte LLP in the United States, and Sangita Karra, VP of Development of Pratham USA, accepted a certificate representing the $250,000 grant at the 2011 Deloitte World Meetings at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Washington, DC. 

Presiding at the ceremony, Ainar Aijala, Chief Corporate Development Officer of DTTL, commented, "It is said that if you educate a man you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman you educate a nation" quoting Ghanaian scholar Dr. James Emmanuel Kwegyir Aggrey.

Pratham USA's new achievement centers will enable hundreds of underprivileged young women to acquire secondary school certifications and develop vocational skills to help them be self-sufficient and gain employment when they return to their local villages.

The first residential centers will open in July 2011.  The students will receive training that emphasizes technology, leadership, entrepreneurship, creativity, and problem solving. They will also receive assistance in looking for jobs and will be encouraged to start their own enterprises. Finally, in addition to learning new skills, the students will also learn how to impart their skills to others so they can help improve the livelihoods of those in their local villages. 

"Pratham USA is delighted to join hands with Deloitte United States in launching this important new initiative focusing specifically on young women, a particularly underserved and in-need population in India," says President of Pratham USA, Atul Varadhachary. "The achievement centers are a unique effort that not only leverages 15+ years of ground experience that Pratham's field staff has, but also the professional skills and management expertise of Deloitte United States's volunteers. With the benefit of this partnership, thousands of young women will be afforded an unprecedented opportunity to advance their education and also transfer their learnings to future generations."

 

Pratham, which means "first" in Sanskrit was founded in the slums of Mumbai in 1994 with UNICEF support.  Today, Pratham's direct urban programs, including pre-schools, community libraries and remedial learning programs reach hundreds of thousands of children every year.  In 2007, with the support of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, Pratham launched the Read India campaign, an innovative, low-cost effort to reach the  ~100 million children in India who cannot read, write or do basic match.   With an annual budget of less than $15 million, Pratham combines large-scale impact with an extremely efficient use of funds.  Pratham USA (www.PrathamUSA.org), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a four-star rating (the highest possible) from Charity Navigator, accepts tax deductible contributions from U.S. donors.