Despite being deserving to CSR investments, Mizoram is one of the least favoured destinations for corporate philanthropic activities in India. Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma recently said the state receives one of the lowest shares of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds from companies in the country. He attributed the low inflow of funds to the limited number of registered CSR implementing agencies in the state.

“Even though there are numerous companies operating in India and are obligated under law to implement Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives, Mizoram continues to receive one of the lowest shares of CSR funds in the country,” the chief minister said while addressing the valedictory function of a three-day capacity building workshop for NGOs and implementing agencies in Aizawl.

In FY 2023-24, Mizoram received Rs 4.48 Cr. in CSR funds from 15 companies. The top three CSR spenders in the state were REC Limited that spent Rs 1.52 Cr., Coal India Limited with a spending of Rs 0.7 crore, and HDFC Bank Limited with a total spending of Rs 0.6 crore. The areas of focus of CSR initiatives were Health, Environment, Education and Rural Development.

Top CSR Projects in Mizoram

CSR of Tata Sons

To address problems like low productivity, income, deforestation, soil erosion, nutrient loss and loss of biodiversity in rural areas of Mizoram, Tata Sons Private Limited has conceived a 5 years CSR intervention in developing alternative integrated livelihood options for the farmers in Aizwal, Serchipp and Lunglei districts and practices for sustainable utilisation of natural resources.

These include expanding the scope of traditional backyard piggery for small holders, facilitating a shift from Jhum farming by engaging households under kharif cultivation, increasing productivity of land through crop diversification, promoting orchard development, livestock management, enhancing knowledge and awareness of better agriculture and horticultural practices, promoting sustainable use of water resources through rainwater harvesting and forming Farmer Producer Organisations for shared inputs.

Initiative by Tata Trusts

The Navajbai Ratan Tata Trust and the Government of Mizoram signed a Memorandum of Understanding on October 10, 2013 towards improving the quality of Education in Mizoram. The MoU extends for a period of 5 years where NRTT and the Government of Mizoram have collaborated in implementing projects to improve the quality of education in the State.

Through this Memorandum of Understanding, the Trusts propose to work in the state on a range of issues aiming at improving quality of preschool services, elementary schools, provision of teaching learning materials in local Mizo and other languages, ensuring life skill and vocational skill education for youth and adolescents, providing access to secondary schools by supporting residential facilities and use of modern Information Communication Technology tools to make teaching – learning relevant and joyful.

In 2016, The Government of Mizoram and Tata Trusts signed another MoU to nurture sports talent in the state by harnessing the rich wealth of talent and existing sports infrastructure. Tata Trusts set up a Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Aizawl, Mizoram in 2018, equipped with international and Indian coaches, nutritionists, physiotherapists and other support staff.

CSR of Oil India

Oil India Limited (OIL), a state-owned enterprise of the Government of India, partnered with the Switzerland-based Global Fund for combating HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in its operational areas of Mizoram and four other Indian states for five years.

OIL has invested heavily in developing infrastructure by way of roads and bridges to improve basic surface communication for the benefit of the people and communities in its operational areas. Over the years, the company has constructed many public stages, auditoriums, libraries, lecture halls, computer centers, waiting sheds, playgrounds, schools and institutes of higher education as well as upgraded and developed rural hospitals for augmentation of rural infrastructure in its areas of operation in Mizoram and four other states.

CSR of SBI

SBI Foundation started ‘SBI Sanjeevani – Clinic on wheels’, a mobile medical unit in South Sikkim during FY 2016-17, to provide primary healthcare services to the rural communities. The project has improved the quality of life of the communities in the remote villages by providing doorstep medical services. The project has been expanded to Mizoram and a few other Indian states in FY 2021-22 with an estimated outreach of over 2 lakh beneficiaries across 250 remote villages. The project has been well-received by the communities, and local Health departments are also supporting the initiative.

CSR of Infosys

With the backing of Infosys Foundation, Avanti Fellows has launched the Girls STEM Education Programme, aiming to offer free engineering and medical test preparation assistance to female students. In fiscal year 2023, the organization placed its focus on educating girls in several states of India including Mizoram.

To equip the students with the necessary skills, the program provides them with 6-12 hours of intensive test preparation classes on a weekly basis, conducted outside regular school hours. The Avanti team diligently conducted weekly assessments, spanning 1-3 hours, to gauge the students’ learning levels and track their progress. These evaluations were comprehensive and diagnostic in nature, generating valuable data points that were utilized to customize the guidance and support needed for each student. Alongside the test preparation classes, the students were provided with JEE/NEET online learning resources, class recordings, mock tests, and orientation sessions.

Magic Bus’ SCALE programme in Mizoram

Poverty alleviation programme Magic Bus has been actively working with children and communities since 2014, in Mizoram. Its 5-year SCALE (School Completion and Livelihood Enablement) programme has been funded by Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiative (APPI) and Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. The programme provides training to teachers from government schools across Mizoram, to build their capabilities to conduct life skills sessions to adolescents in schools, through activity based learning.

After the successful training sessions since 2014, Magic Bus conducted online training sessions for teachers starting 7th September 2020, to prepare them for schools post lockdown. Teachers have been trained to take up sessions on mental well-being, relevance of life skills during the ongoing and post-pandemic situation, identifying and working on children with vulnerability, rekindling interest of learning among adolescents and COVID-19 prevention. The training has also equipped teachers with skills to conduct virtual sessions, how to motivate children virtually and ways to implement the need based curriculum with adolescents.

Magic Bus conducted a survey to understand the impact of COVID-19 on marginalised families and children in India. As per findings reported in Mizoram, more girls (56%) than boys (48%) feared dropping out of school. Teachers have been trained specifically to address this pressing issue. The SCALE programme has been working to construct a system that focuses on building capabilities at the adolescent stage, enabling them to complete their education and expedite their journey out of poverty. The training aims to eradicate any challenges or interruptions to education.

In addition to the support they have provided for the training under SCALE, the Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiative (APPI) has funded Magic Bus’s COVID-19 relief efforts in Mizoram. Magic Bus Young Leaders and employees have distributed ration kits, impacting more than 5200 people from affected communities.

CSR of REC Foundation

REC Foundation, the CSR arm of the Navratna Central Govt. Public Sector Enterprise REC Limited, has increased its efforts in a big way to support welfare work across aspirational districts of the country. The foundation has partnered with at least half a dozen aspirational districts in the thematic areas of Health, Nutrition and School Education.

The focus of the foundation has been on all-around development of India’s unnoticed regions and has travelled far and wide to select ambitious projects in districts where most organizations aren’t able to reach.

REC Foundation has committed a total sum of around Rs. 55 crore towards projects aimed at transforming school education and improving health services. Of the aspirational districts it is implementing the project at, is Mamit District of Mizoram. REC signed a memorandum with Mamit District in Mizoram for transforming school education in government schools and improvement of health services in government health facilities. It committed about Rs 20.63 crore under the initiative.

The initiative aimed at bringing out-of-school children back to formal education, improvement of facilities in schools from water filters to biometric attendance trackers. On the healthcare front, the foundation will work with more than 40 facilities to improve their services. It will include mobile vans, life support equipment and medical test facilities apart from ‘telemedicine’ equipment for all 52 government medical facilities.

CSR of Nestle

20% of India’s population constitutes adolescents (10 to 19 years), which makes adolescent health particularly important to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – a set of universal goals to end poverty, hunger and achieve equality.

The Nestlé Healthy Kids Programme was a breakthrough initiative that was launched in 2009 to show the company’s commitment to promoting nutrition, health and wellbeing among adolescents.

Nestle has extensively worked in the nutrition domain all over the world and it uses this knowledge and core competency in its CSR activities as well. Creating and selling products in the health and nutrition space has armed the company with the right knowledge on how to tackle the evil of malnutrition. The key to Nestle Healthy Kids Programme is the understanding of a balanced diet, healthy eating habits, awareness of food and personal hygiene and regular exercises in form of some physical activity like sports and games.

This CSR program was started by Nestle in 2009 and it is celebrating its 10th year of implementation. Over the last 10 years, the programme has done some phenomenal work and has expanded to include other facets of tackling the problem of malnutrition. It also includes parents and teachers as direct beneficiaries in the programme as they are important stakeholders if we are to defeat malnutrition.

Nestle CSR collaborates with other partners with a common cause who have the expertise in the local conditions to create real impact and bring about a real change in the life of the community where the company operates. The company is implementing this programming in two modes:

1. Conduct Classroom sessions in partnership with Six Regional Universities

2. Partnering with Magic Bus India foundation that has pioneered the ‘Sports for Development’ model

a) The classroom sessions are conducted in partnership with Universities through the Department of Home Science and Food Science, wherein information on the nutrition status of the local food habits is collected through their extension activities and the programme content is developed jointly with Nestlé India team. Each student receives nutrition training – encouraging them to eat more vegetables and fruits, ensuring their meals are as nutritious and diversified as possible. Pre and post programme behavioural and knowledge tests are conducted to measure the effectiveness of learning and implementation.

b) Embracing non-traditional learning method of ‘sports for development’, implementing partner Magic Bus India Foundation, engages with the adolescents in interactive sessions in which they receive nutrition knowledge and are encouraged to play regularly. By their very nature, sports is about participation, inclusion and a sense of belonging, and as a result of the Magic Bus sessions, the entire community comes together to promote a healthier lifestyle.

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The post Top CSR Projects in Mizoram appeared first on The CSR Journal.

Despite being deserving to CSR investments, Mizoram is one of the least favoured destinations for corporate philanthropic activities in India. According to data by provided by the Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman on November 18, 2019, in reply to a Starred Question in the Lok Sabha, in the three financial years prior to 2019, the CSR expenditure in Mizoram was merely Rs 1.38 crore. This is very less as compared to the funds received by states such as Maharashtra that received more than 2000 crores worth of CSR investment in the same period while already having a better development status than Mizoram.

CSR Projects in Mizoram

CSR of Tata Sons

To address problems like low productivity, income, deforestation, soil erosion, nutrient loss and loss of biodiversity in rural areas of Mizoram, Tata Sons Private Limited has conceived a 5 years CSR intervention in developing alternative integrated livelihood options for the farmers in Aizwal, Serchipp and Lunglei districts and practices for sustainable utilisation of natural resources.

These include expanding the scope of traditional backyard piggery for small holders, facilitating a shift from Jhum farming by engaging households under kharif cultivation, increasing productivity of land through crop diversification, promoting orchard development, livestock management, enhancing knowledge and awareness of better agriculture and horticultural practices, promoting sustainable use of water resources through rainwater harvesting and forming Farmer Producer Organisations for shared inputs.

Initiative by Tata Trusts

The Navajbai Ratan Tata Trust and the Government of Mizoram signed a Memorandum of Understanding on October 10, 2013 towards improving the quality of Education in Mizoram. The MoU extends for a period of 5 years where NRTT and the Government of Mizoram have collaborated in implementing projects to improve the quality of education in the State.

Through this Memorandum of Understanding, the Trusts propose to work in the state on a range of issues aiming at improving quality of preschool services, elementary schools, provision of teaching learning materials in local Mizo and other languages, ensuring life skill and vocational skill education for youth and adolescents, providing access to secondary schools by supporting residential facilities and use of modern Information Communication Technology tools to make teaching – learning relevant and joyful.

In 2016, The Government of Mizoram and Tata Trusts signed another MoU to nurture sports talent in the state by harnessing the rich wealth of talent and existing sports infrastructure. Tata Trusts set up a Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Aizawl, Mizoram in 2018, equipped with international and Indian coaches, nutritionists, physiotherapists and other support staff.

CSR of Oil India

Oil India Limited (OIL), a state-owned enterprise of the Government of India, partnered with the Switzerland-based Global Fund for combating HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in its operational areas of Mizoram and four other Indian states for five years.

OIL has invested heavily in developing infrastructure by way of roads and bridges to improve basic surface communication for the benefit of the people and communities in its operational areas. Over the years, the company has constructed many public stages, auditoriums, libraries, lecture halls, computer centers, waiting sheds, playgrounds, schools and institutes of higher education as well as upgraded and developed rural hospitals for augmentation of rural infrastructure in its areas of operation in Mizoram and four other states.

CSR of SBI

SBI Foundation started ‘SBI Sanjeevani – Clinic on wheels’, a mobile medical unit in South Sikkim during FY 2016-17, to provide primary healthcare services to the rural communities. The project has improved the quality of life of the communities in the remote villages by providing doorstep medical services. The project has been expanded to Mizoram and a few other Indian states in FY 2021-22 with an estimated outreach of over 2 lakh beneficiaries across 250 remote villages. The project has been well-received by the communities, and local Health departments are also supporting the initiative.

CSR of Infosys

With the backing of Infosys Foundation, Avanti Fellows has launched the Girls STEM Education Programme, aiming to offer free engineering and medical test preparation assistance to female students. In fiscal year 2023, the organization placed its focus on educating girls in several states of India including Mizoram.

To equip the students with the necessary skills, the program provides them with 6-12 hours of intensive test preparation classes on a weekly basis, conducted outside regular school hours. The Avanti team diligently conducted weekly assessments, spanning 1-3 hours, to gauge the students’ learning levels and track their progress. These evaluations were comprehensive and diagnostic in nature, generating valuable data points that were utilized to customize the guidance and support needed for each student. Alongside the test preparation classes, the students were provided with JEE/NEET online learning resources, class recordings, mock tests, and orientation sessions.

Magic Bus’ SCALE programme in Mizoram

Poverty alleviation programme Magic Bus has been actively working with children and communities since 2014, in Mizoram. Its 5-year SCALE (School Completion and Livelihood Enablement) programme has been funded by Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiative (APPI) and Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. The programme provides training to teachers from government schools across Mizoram, to build their capabilities to conduct life skills sessions to adolescents in schools, through activity based learning.

After the successful training sessions since 2014, Magic Bus conducted online training sessions for teachers starting 7th September 2020, to prepare them for schools post lockdown. Teachers have been trained to take up sessions on mental well-being, relevance of life skills during the ongoing and post-pandemic situation, identifying and working on children with vulnerability, rekindling interest of learning among adolescents and COVID-19 prevention. The training has also equipped teachers with skills to conduct virtual sessions, how to motivate children virtually and ways to implement the need based curriculum with adolescents.

Magic Bus conducted a survey to understand the impact of COVID-19 on marginalised families and children in India. As per findings reported in Mizoram, more girls (56%) than boys (48%) feared dropping out of school. Teachers have been trained specifically to address this pressing issue. The SCALE programme has been working to construct a system that focuses on building capabilities at the adolescent stage, enabling them to complete their education and expedite their journey out of poverty. The training aims to eradicate any challenges or interruptions to education.

In addition to the support they have provided for the training under SCALE, the Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiative (APPI) has funded Magic Bus’s COVID-19 relief efforts in Mizoram. Magic Bus Young Leaders and employees have distributed ration kits, impacting more than 5200 people from affected communities.

REC Foundation

REC Foundation, the CSR arm of the Navratna Central Govt. Public Sector Enterprise REC Limited, has increased its efforts in a big way to support welfare work across aspirational districts of the country. The foundation has partnered with at least half a dozen aspirational districts in the thematic areas of Health, Nutrition and School Education.

The focus of the foundation has been on all-around development of India’s unnoticed regions and has travelled far and wide to select ambitious projects in districts where most organizations aren’t able to reach.

REC Foundation has committed a total sum of around Rs. 55 crore towards projects aimed at transforming school education and improving health services. Of the aspirational districts it is implementing the project at, is Mamit District of Mizoram. REC signed a memorandum with Mamit District in Mizoram for transforming school education in government schools and improvement of health services in government health facilities. It committed about Rs 20.63 crore under the initiative.

The initiative aimed at bringing out-of-school children back to formal education, improvement of facilities in schools from water filters to biometric attendance trackers. On the healthcare front, the foundation will work with more than 40 facilities to improve their services. It will include mobile vans, life support equipment and medical test facilities apart from ‘telemedicine’ equipment for all 52 government medical facilities.

Nestle

20% of India’s population constitutes adolescents (10 to 19 years), which makes adolescent health particularly important to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – a set of universal goals to end poverty, hunger and achieve equality.

The Nestlé Healthy Kids Programme was a breakthrough initiative that was launched in 2009 to show the company’s commitment to promoting nutrition, health and wellbeing among adolescents.

Nestle has extensively worked in the nutrition domain all over the world and it uses this knowledge and core competency in its CSR activities as well. Creating and selling products in the health and nutrition space has armed the company with the right knowledge on how to tackle the evil of malnutrition. The key to Nestle Healthy Kids Programme is the understanding of a balanced diet, healthy eating habits, awareness of food and personal hygiene and regular exercises in form of some physical activity like sports and games.

This CSR program was started by Nestle in 2009 and it is celebrating its 10th year of implementation. Over the last 10 years, the programme has done some phenomenal work and has expanded to include other facets of tackling the problem of malnutrition. It also includes parents and teachers as direct beneficiaries in the programme as they are important stakeholders if we are to defeat malnutrition.

Nestle CSR collaborates with other partners with a common cause who have the expertise in the local conditions to create real impact and bring about a real change in the life of the community where the company operates. The company is implementing this programming in two modes:

1. Conduct Classroom sessions in partnership with Six Regional Universities

2. Partnering with Magic Bus India foundation that has pioneered the ‘Sports for Development’ model

a) The classroom sessions are conducted in partnership with Universities through the Department of Home Science and Food Science, wherein information on the nutrition status of the local food habits is collected through their extension activities and the programme content is developed jointly with Nestlé India team. Each student receives nutrition training – encouraging them to eat more vegetables and fruits, ensuring their meals are as nutritious and diversified as possible. Pre and post programme behavioural and knowledge tests are conducted to measure the effectiveness of learning and implementation.

b) Embracing non-traditional learning method of ‘sports for development’, implementing partner Magic Bus India Foundation, engages with the adolescents in interactive sessions in which they receive nutrition knowledge and are encouraged to play regularly. By their very nature, sports is about participation, inclusion and a sense of belonging, and as a result of the Magic Bus sessions, the entire community comes together to promote a healthier lifestyle.

The post Top CSR Projects in Mizoram appeared first on The CSR Journal.

 “We are honoured to win the Mahatma Award. Over the last two decades, Magic Bus has been working relentlessly, impacting the lives of more than 1 million children and young people.  We continue to envision a world where children complete their secondary education and attain employability skills that equip them for stable livelihoods, to contribute positively to their community and to the world around them. It is truly thrilling and gratifying when our efforts and initiatives get recognised”, says Mr Jayant Rastogi, Global CEO, Magic Bus.

Magic Bus is now also working on a COVID-19 Crisis Recovery programme that aims to secure the livelihoods of 2,00,000 families in rural and urban areas through access to entitlements and government schemes, programmes and placement in jobs in the organised sector in urban areas. This in turn will ensure 3,00,000 children from these families facing economic distress, who are at risk of dropping out, are back in school, are regular and intent on completing formal education.

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After the successful training sessions since 2014, Magic Bus has conducted online training sessions for teachers starting 7th September 2020, to prepare teachers for schools once they reopen post lockdown.  So far 238 headmasters of these government schools have been oriented about the programme and 550 teachers have been trained to deliver life skills sessions to adolescents. There is a crisis due to the pandemic, but our goal is to ensure learning for children continues. Teachers will be trained to take up sessions on mental well-being, relevance of life skills during the current and post-pandemic situation, identifying and working on children with vulnerability, rekindling interest of learning among adolescents and COVID-19 prevention. The training will also equip teachers with skills to conduct virtual sessions, how to motivate children virtually & ways to implement the need based curriculum with adolescents.

Magic Bus conducted a survey to understand the impact of COVID-19 on marginalised families and children in India. As per findings reported in Mizoram, more girls (56%) than boys (48%) feared dropping out of school. Teachers will be trained specifically to address this pressing issue. The SCALE programme has been working to construct a system that focuses on building capabilities at the adolescent stage, enabling them to complete their education and expedite their journey out of poverty. The training aims to eradicate any challenges or interruptions to education.

In addition to the support they have provided for the training under SCALE, the Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiative (APPI) has funded Magic Bus’s COVID-19 relief efforts in Mizoram. Magic Bus Young Leaders and employees have distributed 1052 ration kits, impacting more than 5200 people from affected communities.

Encouraging the partnership, Mr. Lalhmachhuana, State Project Director said, “We are grateful that Magic Bus has provided training to our teachers, with support of the Magic Bus Academy (Online learning app). This is a great support system for the teachers and we look forward to continue the good work.”

Jayant Rastogi, Global CEO, Magic Bus said, “The uniqueness of the training is that the curriculum is need-based, addressing issues that need urgent attention. It is designed based on a survey we conducted with teachers, parents and adolescents in Mizoram. Despite the pandemic and lockdown, our strategy continues to ensure that learning for children and capability building of teachers continues so that they can begin conducting sessions until schools reopen. The training sessions will be virtual and will be supplemented with our learning app, Magic Bus Academy (MBA) which is our capacity building platform for Magic Bus employees and teachers.”

The online curriculum is based on years of programming experience, inputs from headmasters and teachers, results of the survey on impact of the pandemic and lockdown on children, child protection, gender and ways to ensure useful application of Magic Bus Academy.

Magic Bus has also created virtual groups of school children in the absence of day schools, to ensure children are connected to learning, even during the disruption. Magic Bus is conducting small group sessions on virtual platforms such as conference calls and WhatsApp, on the need based curriculum. Teachers are also being introduced to these virtual platforms and they have begun engaging with children.

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Here is one such story of how the determination to keep children connected to education, changed the destiny of an entire village in Maharashtra:

Natala is a village in Wardha district, Maharashtra that had no transport connectivity. Education beyond class 8 had been a challenge for several years as children had no access to school. The nearest secondary school was 5 kms away with no transport from the village. Instead children would have to walk a narrow, jungle and stone laden path to access transport to the city, a risk none of the parents were willing to take.

When Magic Bus began its intervention in Natala village through Project Disha, many children were dropping out of school as there was no transport connectivity. Project Disha mobilised the Sarpanch, parents, students and local stake holders and advocated for a road and a bus service that connected the village to the city. 10 months of mobilising, rigorous follow ups and sustained efforts finally led to the start of a bus service for Natala village.

Seeing the bus service start, Mayuri, a girl residing in Natala, was the happiest, as she too, like others had decided to drop out of school. Mayuri is a differently abled girl who found it impossible to walk the distance. Her mother who is an ex Sarpanch and her community members took it upon them to make sure that no child drops out.

The bus service is not merely a move to address the crisis. Rather, it provides an opportunity for the people of Natala: It is connecting residents of Natala to livelihood opportunities. It is giving them access to healthcare. It is ensuring that all their children now have access to school and can aspire to a future that is poverty free. More importantly it now offers an array of opportunities to the young girls and boys of Natala.

Mayuri was then able to continue her education in a school that was located 6 kms away from her village. She has worked very hard and received support from her teachers and headmaster, including her mentor, Vaishali who is a young leader at Magic Bus. In July 2020, her exam results were declared and Mayuri was the first child in the whole gram panchayat to score 84%. She has also ranked 2nd in her school.  Her parent’s joy knew no bounds and she made every person in her village and school very happy and proud.

Mayuri’s hard work and determination has encouraged more than 30 students to continue to complete their education. Since 2017, Magic Bus India Foundation has been implementing Project Disha in 31 schools and 30 villages spread across 8 districts in Maharashtra. Project Disha is supported by HDFC Bank Parivartan. The efforts and mobilisation of the community have ensured that no child drops out of main stream education.

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The initiative is part of Magic Bus India’s ongoing fundraising to secure 18 million meals for 57,000 vulnerable families.

Jayant Rastogi, Global CEO, Magic Bus, remarked, “We are very proud of our team, which has quickly mobilized to provide relief to communities most in need across India. We will continue to support vulnerable families by providing basic essentials and ensuring that children develop key skills to adapt to the current environment. With the support of Mphasis, we are optimistic we will achieve our goal of providing 18 million meals to 57,000 families. We cannot thank them enough for their unwavering support.”

“Mphasis is pleased to collaborate with Magic Bus, one of India’s most impactful NGOs. For more than 20 years, Magic Bus has empowered children and youth with knowledge, skills and resources to elevate from poverty and live fulfilling lives. We have been impressed with their enthusiasm, dedication, and team of committed young leaders, especially during this time of crisis”, said Nitin Rakesh, Chief Executive Officer, Mphasis.

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The post CSR arm of Mphasis Supporting Magic Bus India Covid-19 Relief Efforts appeared first on The CSR Journal.

This time around, Magic Bus India Foundation has further strengthened its endeavour and partnered with both private and government organisations to ensure that the ongoing city-wide food and hygiene relief distribution efforts remains data-led, aligned and focused. Magic Bus is one of the several NGOs who have joined hands with government agencies to provide relief to vulnerable families across Mumbai amid the coronavirus outbreak and the nationwide curfew. The initiative will enable concerned Mumbaikars to support food and hygiene relief efforts. Their individual donations will be matched 5X by Milkar’s corporate partners Godrej & Boyce, RPG Foundation and ATE Chandra Foundation.

Speaking at the launch of this important initiative, the Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said, “In these uncertain times, food security is very important for those left most vulnerable by the Covid-19 pandemic. I would like to congratulate all the stakeholders — large corporates, NGOs, BMC and Mumbaikars — on the occasion of launching Milkar for Mumbai, an online platform that will help provide food safety to those vulnerable over the long-term in Mumbai. I hope every Mumbaikar will donate to this noble cause where every rupee raised will be matched five times by corporates.”

Jayant Rastogi, Global CEO, Magic Bus shared, “By receiving real-time data on the city’s urgent food & grain needs and receiving individuals’ donations, multiplied 5X by corporate partners will ensure many affected families would be well taken care of. With our efforts right from sourcing to packaging and distributing food and grain to a list of pre-determined beneficiaries, we can ensure that our goal of helping families get back on their feet, is well met.”

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Magic Bus’ sports activity-based sessions are carried out across more than 798 schools, and works with India’s poorest children and young people. As Magic Bus celebrates its 20th anniversary, Global CEO Jayant Rastogi told us what the non-profit has in store. Excerpts from an exclusive interview published in the latest issue of our magazine.

Q 1. Congratulations on 20 years of Magic Bus. Take us through the 20-year journey.

It was what our founder Matthew Spacie had envisioned in 1999. From 3000 children in 1999 in Mumbai, Magic Bus has transformed into a much bigger organization, now having impacted more than one million children and young people in India helping them move out of poverty. We equip children and young people in the age group of 12 to 18 with the skills and knowledge they need to grow up and move out of poverty, taking them from a childhood full of challenges to a life with meaningful livelihoods.

Since its inception, where we were merely providers for these children helping them grow, advance in life and lead comfortable lives; we needed a holistic approach to ensure sustainability. The Magic Bus childhood to livelihood programme is now a 7-year long journey holding the child’s hand from the age of 12 to prepare them to be successful, economically empowered and free of poverty.

The programme enables the child to fend off destabilisers, such as child marriage and child labour ensuring they complete their secondary education and turn them into first-generation salary earners having secure careers in the organised sector. In the last twenty years, we have achieved what we set out to attain. In the current year, 375,000 children are on this journey of moving out of poverty in 22 states and 80 districts of India.

Q 2. What is different about Magic Bus in the way it approaches child development? How did the non-profit organisation grow from a sports-led programme into a global do-gooder?

We believe in a holistic plan that takes care of the overall development of children that also helps them evolve into thinking minds. We help them remove hindrances, and eventually earn a living, besides getting educated, not merely become
literate. The purpose of which is to prepare students to meet the challenges of living as well as academics. Our approach has key components such as Life Skills, Education Enhancement, Employability Skills Education, Livelihood and Community Connect.

We have a much larger role to play now, wherein the children are imparted basic literacy & spoken English, are taught teamwork, problem-solving, managing self, learning to learn and communications; financial and digital literacy, digital literacy, career awareness; sector-specific training in Retail, IT, BFSI, e-commerce; placement and postplacement support; engage with parents and the whole community to build support for children’s aspirations.

Q 3. Are there any existing or future partnerships planned with the government?

Magic Bus works in most of the government schools across the country. As an NGO we bring the skill and government brings in the scale. We have existing partnerships with the Government of Maharashtra, Mizoram and other state governments. Our partnership with the Government of Maharashtra will enable an outreach of 150,000 children through an expansion of our existing adolescent education programme. The focus will be on training teachers to deliver life skills and empowering community leaders to create an ecosystem to enable children to complete their secondary education.

In Aurangabad district we have partnered with UNDP to implement a Youth Employment Exchange focused on peri-urban locations. This partnership has been very successful for us as we have placed more than 1000 young women in jobs over a short period of 9 months. Partnering with the government helps accomplish a common goal of growth expansion and we look forward to future partnerships.

Q 4. Many CSR programmes start out with the best intentions and funding, yet fail to make an impact. What gaps do you see in the implementation of CSR programmes?

Our top priority is on impact; to ensure all children on our programme complete their education, delay their age of
marriage, and get the skills to enter organised work – in order to move out of poverty. To do this at scale, we have
brought technology to help our delivery team deliver the programme meticulously.

Our monitoring apps help our M&E teams track the programme rigorously. With this, we create impact at scale and can take our current outreach number of 3.75 lakh children and young people to 16 lakh children and young people in the next 5 years.

Most of the gaps evident in implementation are because there are no processes in place and neither technology to support the scale up. Magic Bus is very focussed on both: quality of programme delivery and achieving impact at scale.

Q 5. In light of the expanding scope of CSR today, what can corporate companies learn from nonprofits?

NGOs have the opportunity to be more business-like in their approach and there is a lot to take away from corporates, but corporates too stand to learn from the development sector. Unlike any corporate, where everything is built around
maximising profitability, we address specific challenges, involve people from the communities, and contextualize, based on geography and cultural norms. We, therefore, tailor our programmes for the communities we work with.

For instance, Magic Bus training programmes provide training for girls who may want to be employed in non-traditional roles, such as Uber drivers, solar energy mechanics, technicians etc., but since we realise that the same programme cannot be replicated in a non-metro location, even if there are girls who want to join the programme, we may not be able to find enough employers who are willing to hire them. This insightful information, helps us add more layers to the intervention should we decide to move it.

Then compared to corporates, there is an absence of readily available data and we need to consistently devise solutions and approaches and work towards our project goals, all along tweaking and adjusting our programmes. NGOs thus innovate and take on big problems to tackle. Nonprofits also lean towards having empathetic leadership.

Q 6. Which partnerships and projects is your team most enthusiastic about?

Innovation is in our DNA. We at Magic Bus are always innovating to better the quality of programme and to create a stronger and bigger impact on our participants:

• Our education system does not make our adolescents ready to enter the world of work. Hence we needed a programme to address this. In partnerships with Google, we are introducing an Employment Education programme that will make adolescents in the age group of 15-18 work-ready.

• While we do very well in livelihood programme, we know that almost 70% of our population lives in rural India, where the opportunity for business is higher. To address this, we have introduced an entrepreneurship programme for our young people.

• To scale up our livelihood programme in peri-urban locations, we have partnered with UNDP to implement a Youth Employment Exchange. We are doing this through a job portal.

• Through an immersive approach we are working closely with the school teachers to deliver our adolescent education programme in the districts selected for this programme.

Q 7. In recent years, you’ve expanded beyond India and now have affiliate programmes in Nepal, Myanmar and Bangladesh, among others. What is your vision for the next decade?

We have an ambitious expansion plan for the next decade. We are currently working with 3.75 Lakh children and young people and our goal is to take this number up to 16 lakh children and young people in the next 5 years ensuring their continuity
from education through to livelihood. We will do this with a focused approach where we will work with almost all adolescents in government schools / districts where we are already present.

We are working with two of the state governments to support us in this scale-up. We are also looking at introducing an employability education model to children in the 15-18 age group. We are targeting a world where children break out of poverty and lead fulfilling, rewarding lives, contributing positively to their community and to the world around them.

Q 8. What does your programme Childhood to Livelihood entail?

Children on the Magic Bus Childhood to Livelihood programme successfully fend off destabilisers such as child marriage and child labour. They complete their secondary education and go on to become first-generation salary earners having secure careers in the organised sector. Our youth-centered Livelihoods Programme connects the aspirations and potential of young people to available market opportunities. We build their employability skills and map job potential based on individual strengths and mobility.

We work with support structures like parents, the community at large and local government institutions to ensure social, emotional and economic well-being for all young people living in that area. We work with the local community who have a better knowledge of the local issues. We involve selected members from the community as youth leaders who are role models in their community. Our approach mobilises the entire ecosystem available to the child or young person to create transformational change in their lives.

Change takes time and we understand this. Which is why we are perhaps the only NGO to accompany a child in her journey from school to a sustainable livelihood. This journey spans 7 years beginning at age 12 where we can ensure impact is created.
This approach enables children to complete their education, delay their age of marriage, and get the skills to enter organised work – in order to move out of poverty.

This interview appeared in the October 2019 edition of our print magazine

The post We are working with 3.75 lakh children and young people: Jayant Rastogi, Global CEO, Magic Bus appeared first on The CSR Journal.

With its CSR Policy focus areas firmly embedded in its Purpose, in 2017, the Company focused its activities on creating nutrition, health and breastfeeding awareness, providing access to clean drinking water and sanitation, supporting development of agricultural communities while helping them reduce water use, enhancing the livelihood of street food vendors and encouraging the cause of girl child education.

During the year 2017, the CSR Committee was re-constituted and Rama Bijapurkar, Independent Non-Executive Director was appointed as Member of the Committee in place of Ravinder Narain, who retired as Director. The Committee comprises Dr Swati A. Piramal, Independent Non-Executive Director, as the Chairperson of the Committee and Suresh Narayanan, Chairman and Managing Director.

An overview of Nestlé’s CSR programmes:

Nestlé Healthy Kids Programme

The programme has been developed with a focus to raise nutrition, health and wellness awareness of school age children. The unbranded programme has been conducted since 2009, in village schools around the Company’s manufacturing facilities with the objective of raising awareness regarding good nutritional and cooking practices, good hygiene and promoting physical fitness.

Six leading regional Universities through the Department of Home Science and Food Science conduct this programme wherein information on the nutrition status of the region and local food habits is collected through their extension activities and the programme content is developed jointly with Nestlé India nutritionists.

The Company joined hands with the NGO Magic Bus India Foundation, one of India’s largest behaviour change organisations, to extend its commitment to promote healthier lifestyles through the ‘sports for development’ model. Children are engaged in interactive sessions in which they receive nutrition and health knowledge and are encouraged to play regularly. The year-long programme, designed with over 30 sessions for each child, ran across 18 states in 2017.

These efforts increase children’s basic knowledge of the importance of nutrition and physical activity, and have reached over 200,000 adolescents across 21 states encouraging them to live healthier lives.

Project Jagriti

The Company rolled out Project Jagriti in partnership with the Mamta Health Institute for Mother and Child as part of its commitment to provide education programmes for good nutrition and feeding practices, improving nutrition and health at key life stages – adolescence to caregivers. Jagriti creates an enabling environment for the best health outcomes, involving the health care system and stakeholders from the community.

The programme started with a pilot in Delhi, reaching out to over 100,000 people living in slum conditions to educate and encourage community support for good nutrition and breastfeeding practices. It focused on creating peer mentor support groups for counselling on good nutrition for pregnant and lactating women, encouraging the early initiation of breastfeeding, exclusive breastfeeding, improving breastfeeding practices and encouraging the uptake of public health services. During 2017, the programme ran across 15 districts of Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Chandigarh, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Delhi.

Clean Drinking Water Projects and Water Awareness Programme

The Company constructs clean drinking water facilities in schools directly and through NGO partner Enable Health Society. Till 2017, the Company has constructed over 257 water tanks across 7 states benefitting more than 140,000 students.

The water tanks source water from deep below ground level and the sourced water is stored in hygienic tanks enclosed in specially designed facilities to preserve the quality of the water. The Company also conducts periodic water quality checks to ensure safe drinking water, while involving the school and surrounding community through joint ownership of the water tanks, which helps to establish better upkeep and maintenance of the tanks.

For locations where groundwater does not meet quality standards, the Company has partnered with the NGO Enable Health Society, to provide drinking water treatment plants. The Company conducts Water Awareness Programmes aimed at ensuring hygienic and sustainable water use, reaching out to over 104,000 students.

The Company partnered with the Department of Medical and Health, Government of Rajasthan to offer access to clean drinking water at 2 Public Health Centres where the Company provides clean drinking water through its NGO partner, Enable Health Society as a part of the Adarsh Public Health Center Yojna established by the Government.

Sanitation Facilities

The Company has been constructing sanitation facilities for girl students in village schools to reduce the dropout rate caused by lack of proper sanitation facilities. These facilities are provided for girl students in village schools across all its factory locations. This has had a direct impact on the attendance of girls in village schools.

Through this initiative, the Company endeavours to eliminate what is considered the major cause of dropouts among girl students in village schools. During 2017, the Company has set up sanitation facilities in government schools across 11 states and so far the Company has set up over 430 facilities benefitting more than 150,000 girl students.

Water Conservation in Agriculture

The Company launched a water stewardship initiative with AgSRI at the Kabini river Basin in Karnataka. Over the years, the water demand in the catchment has been increasing, leading to inadequate supply. The Company commissioned a study to understand the current water management and implement applicable water interventions. The study found that river water discharges would continue to deplete while the competing requirements for drinking water and irrigation increase.

As agriculture is the largest user of water from the catchment, the Company is working with AgSRI to implement pilot projects promoting the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) and the Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative (SSI). The project aims to set up demonstration farms and train farmers on ecologically sustainable practices to reduce the agricultural water withdrawal from the catchment area, while improving agricultural productivity.

Project Serve Safe Food

The Company joined hands with NIDAN and national and local food authorities, including the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) in Delhi, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), Ministry of Medical and Health Services in Rajasthan, Directorate of Food and Drugs Administration in Goa and the Department of Health and Family Welfare, Kerala to launch Project ‘Serve Safe Food’ for training street food vendors.

While street food vending is an important source of informal employment for a large number of population, a variety of constraints including lack of knowledge and skills in business, limited training opportunities, and restricted mobility prevent street vendors from improving their capacities. The programme aims to help them improve their income, sustain their livelihoods and enter into strategic employment opportunities in new market conditions.

During 2017, the programme was implemented across Goa, Rajasthan, U.P., Kerala and Delhi, reaching out to about 4,800 street food vendors who were also awarded a certificate and presented a hygiene kit at the end of the training.

Educate The Girl Child: Power of Print

The Company partnered with Project Nanhi Kali. A country wide awareness campaign was launched that supported the education of girls through Nanhi Kali.

As a continuation of the highly acclaimed #EducateTheGirlChild campaign the Company partnered with Times of India and launched an innovative communication campaign called ‘Power of Print’.

The campaign invited all top communication agencies to come up with an inspirational content for a print campaign to create awareness about the importance of sending more girls to school. The campaign resulted in 823 entries with J. Walter Thompson India emerging as the winner with their “Classroom” concept.

Driven by the purpose ‘Enhancing quality of life and contributing to a healthier future’, the Company focuses its efforts in society on the three overarching ambitions of enabling healthier and happier lives for individuals and families, on helping develop thriving and resilient communities, and on stewarding the planet’s natural resources for future generations, with particular care for water.

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