The/Nudge Foundation, which is supported by industry stalwarts such as Nandan Nilekani, Devi Shetty and Manish Sabharwal, has said it plans to scale up its operations across India for its underprivileged youth skills development programme.
It said the expansion is supported by a $250,000 grant from The Rockefeller Foundation, a U.S.-based not-for-profit foundation with assets of more than $4 billion. The grant would be used to build capacity for admissions, programme delivery and tech-driven data management systems.
“From the work we have done over the past two years, we have seen that our model works,” said Atul Satija, founder of The/Nudge, in a statement issued on Thursday. “It is now time to bring more youth into mainstream career paths by working on their skill gaps,” said Mr. Satija, a former top executive at iconic mobile ad start-up InMobi.
Gurukuls
Over 30% of those aged 15 to 29 in India are not in employment, education or training, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
The/Nudge said its ‘Gurukuls’ help underprivileged youth through a rigorous fully residential programme aimed at job and life-readiness. Over the next year, the organisation plans to expand to more States to bring deserving students and train them at the existing ‘Gurukuls’. The aim is to scale to over 5,000 students annually and provide gainful employment.
“Intervention by ‘The/Nudge Project of End Poverty’ attacks the root causes of unemployability among India’s youth,” said Ashvin Dayal, associate vice-president and managing director, Asia, Rockefeller Foundation. He said The/Nudge team has an impressive track record in equipping and supporting the underprivileged youth in “hard as well as soft skills” that allow them to thrive.
The/Nudge said its “Gurukul students” are offered specialisations across four professions at present — driving, beauty, plumbing and data entry. The placements happen at the end of the programme.
