Innovative Partnership Creates Education and Entrepreneurship Opportunities for Women and Girls in Ghana and Malawi
2010 Clinton Global Initiative Commitment will benefit more than one million people
NEW YORK – September 21, 2010 – The MasterCard Foundation and Camfed today announced their 2010 Clinton Global Initiative joint commitment to reach 270,000 young people in rural Ghana and Malawi with secondary education, financial literacy and business skills, and information and communications technology (ICT) training. More than one million people in rural Africa are expected to benefit from the commitment, which is backed by a $10.1 million contribution from The MasterCard Foundation.
To fulfill this commitment, Camfed will scale up its education programs in Ghana and Malawi over the next five years, expanding financial literacy and business skills training through its alumni network. The organization will also pilot an innovative internship program designed to build a more diversified local economy, catalyzed by the leadership of young African women. As a partner in the scale?up, Google is donating $360,000 that will result in ICT training to 1,000 members of Cama, Camfed’s alumni network, to increase their employability, delivered through ICT centers that will serve as hubs for entrepreneurship and innovation.
“Adolescent girls and women in rural Africa face great barriers to economic empowerment,” said Ann Cotton, Camfed’s executive director. “By providing thousands of girls and women with vital knowledge and skills, this partnership will equip a critical mass of young women to break the cycle of inter?generational poverty and lead economic growth in their communities.”
Only 43 percent of girls in Ghana and 23 percent of girls in Malawi are able to complete secondary school because the cost is beyond their families’ means. Even for girls who do complete school, job opportunities in rural areas are extremely limited. This commitment creates a continuum of support for girls by enabling them to complete secondary school, launch new businesses and bring growth enterprises to their rural communities.
“We were fortunate to connect with Camfed at the 2009 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting,” said Reeta Roy, president and CEO of The MasterCard Foundation. “Our partnership will increase the employability of women and girls in the developing world, who are among the most vulnerable populations to poverty.”
About Camfed
Camfed (The Campaign for Female Education) works to solve long?term health, economic and social issues in rural Africa by educating girls and investing in their economic independence and leadership once they graduate. Since 1993, 1,065,710 children in some of the poorest regions of Zimbabwe, Zambia, Ghana, Tanzania and Malawi have benefited from Camfed’s education program. For more information, please visit www.camfed.org.
About The MasterCard Foundation
The MasterCard Foundation believes that every person has the potential to transform their lives and to improve the lives of their families and their communities. By increasing access to microfinance and youth education to people in developing countries, the Foundation is enabling them to realize their potential and lift themselves out of poverty. It is an independent, private foundation based in Toronto, Canada and was established through the generosity of MasterCard Worldwide at the time of the company’s initial public offering in 2006. For more information, see www.mastercardfdn.org.
