$1.8-M grant for youth skills training

MANILA, Philippines - Accenture and the Accenture Foundations have awarded Save the Children an additional grant of $1.8 million to help the organization provide approximately 7,000 disadvantaged and at-risk young people – including nearly 5,000 young women – in the Philippines, Egypt, Indonesia with business skills that strengthen employment opportunities.

The grant brings Accenture’s direct support to Save the Children to more than $2.5 million since 2010.

The award reflects Accenture’s global corporate citizenship initiative, Skills to Succeed, which will equip 250,000 people around the world by 2015 with the skills to get a job or build a business.

The two-year grant will help Save the Children deliver market-relevant education, mentoring relationships, internships and apprenticeships that assist young people in finding a job or building a business.

“Supporting Save the Children exemplifies Accenture’s commitment to building skills and improving the communities in which we live and work,” said Nescel Asuncion, corporate citizenship lead of Accenture in the Philippines.  “Save the Children is proving it’s possible to create positive change and a lasting impact on the economic well-being of individuals by connecting them with organizations, programs and skills that can help them succeed.”

The grant – which will build on the successes and lessons from Save the Children’s ongoing Skills to Succeed projects in China, Bangladesh and Bosnia – will also fund an assessment of job market conditions and needs, help establish strong connections with prospective employers and provide advocacy for long-term change in governmental policies and programs.