Citi Foundation partners IRC on refugee entrepreneurship
Supports group with $2m
The Citi Foundation and the International Rescue Committee (IRC) have entered into partnership that will provide refugees, young people displaced within their own countries and vulnerable youth from the communities hosting them with support.
The $2 million grant by Citi will help the target population generate a reliable income and contribute to their local economy. The new partnership was launched in London on the Tuesday, 3 October, 2017.
According to Citi Bank, the $2m funding wouldl provide refugees aged 16 – 24 in Greece, Jordan and Nigeria with business training and start-up grants through the Citi Foundation’s Pathways to Progress initiative Lagos.
The two years’ partnership, themed: “Rescuing Futures” is expected to benefit about 1,000 young people across three cities; Athens in Greece, Amman in Jordan and Yola in northeast Nigeria, the youths will be supported to start their own businesses.
President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee, David Miliband, said: “The IRC’s partnership with the Citi Foundation represents a best-in-class global public-private partnership”.
He adds,“The IRC has unique expertise in working with conflict-affected populations and the urban-displaced to build economic resilience. Alongside the Citi Foundation’s Pathways to Progress initiative, a commendable commitment to investing in the futures of young people, this project will have a life changing impact on some of the most marginalized youth around the world.”
The humanitarian landscape is changing; 60% of the world’s refugees, and 80% of internally displaced people, now live in urban areas, and four-fifths live in developing countries that can least afford to host them. There are more young people in the world now than ever before – 1.2 billion – and they face huge challenges with employment.
CEO of Citi Europe Middle East and Africa (EMEA) Jim Cowles, said: “Our Pathways to Progress initiative is our solution to securing positive futures for vulnerable young people. Working with the IRC will enable us to invest in some of EMEA’s most vulnerable youth and put them on a sustainable economic path.
Given today’s context, well-designed interventions like rescuing futures can address inequality of opportunity, and positively impact community wellbeing and economic growth.”
The Citi Foundation, is a longstanding supporter of the IRC, helping to fund their Research & Development and emergency work in recent years. This year saw the expansion of the Citi Foundation’s Pathways to Progress’ initiative globally with a $100m commitment to reach 500,000 young people with entrepreneurship and employability training before 2020.
Alongside the $2m grant from the Citi Foundation, a further $8m has been committed across EMEA to support programmes under the Citi Foundation’s Pathways to Progress initiative and contribute to UN Sustainable Development Goal 8: reducing youth unemployment.
Grants include $1.6m to Youth Business International, $1.3m to TechnoServe, $450,000 to United States African Development Foundation, and $80,000 to LEAP Africa.
Stories by Bonny Amadi
