Bollywood Actress and International Recording Artist Priyanka Chopra inspires teenage girls to aim high with UNICEF

LONDON/ CHANDRAPUR, India 10 August 2014

Joint release from UNICEF and Barclays

Bollywood Actress and International Recording Artist Priyanka Chopra inspires teenage girls to aim

high with UNICEF

Bollywood  Actress,  International  recording  Artist  and  UNICEF  India  Ambassador  Priyanka  Chopra

met with young women in Chandrapur, India, to mark International Youth Day1

their  lives  are  being  transformed  through  the  Building  Young  Futures  programme,  which  is  run  in

partnership with Barclays.

Priyanka  Chopra  has  been  supporting  UNICEF’s  adolescent  work  in  India  for  eight  years.  During

her  visit  she  met  young  women  from  the  Building  Young  Futures  programme,  locally  known  as

Deepshikha, and saw how they are being empowered to help fulfil their potential.

Building Young Futures is a global partnership between Barclays and UNICEF that aims to unlock the

potential of young people from disadvantaged communities. 

Through the programme in India young women are receiving peer to peer support in developing the life, enterprise and financial skills they

need  to  overcome  the  challenges  they  face  to  become  strong,  financially  independent  women  as

well as agents of change in their communities. This includes learning how to save, building business

plans, developing their own enterprises and learning how to network as well as building confidence,

understanding girl’s rights and leadership skills.

In  India  there  are  around  243  million  adolescents  who  are  facing  rising  youth  unemployment

Life  can  be  particularly  hard  for  young  women  as  they  face  the  challenges  of  limited  economic

opportunities  and  access  to  training  and  employment,  which  reinforce  broader  issues  of

discrimination, early marriage, violence and poverty.

Priyanka  Chopra  said:  “Girls have the ability to transform their own lives, develop their own

enterprises and help grow India’s economy. The Building Young Futures programme being

implemented by UNICEF in collaboration with Barclays is giving them the vital skills and support they

need to make this happen.

“I met girls who have experienced incredible hardship in their lives. Building Young Futures has given

them a voice and confidence, or ‘daring’ as they call it. These girls are working together, setting

up businesses, planning their futures; they are empowered to handle the challenges life throws at

them. I strongly advocate that parents, care-givers and educators must give the girls more and more

opportunities to grow in their lives.”

In  India,  by  2015,  Building  Young  Futures  will  have  empowered  around  100,000  girls  and  young

women  directly  and  another  200,000  girls  through  the  programme  being  scaled  up  by  the

Maharashtra  Human  Development  Commissionerate.    The  programme  depends  on  UNICEF,

 International Youth Day is 12 August 2014

2 BACKGROUND PAPER FOR THE WORLD DEVELOPMENT REPORT 2013

 and to witness how

Barclays  and  the  Government  of Maharashtra  sharing  their  expertise.    It  has  helped  these  young

women  to  build  confidence,  knowledge  and  skills,  which  gives  them  choices  and  the  opportunity

to  build  sustainable  livelihoods.    The  girls  take  their  strength,  and  determination  back  into  their

communities,  effecting  significant  change  and  helping  to  transform  the  wellbeing  of  even  more

women and children.

Ram  Gopal,  Chief  Operating  Officer,  Barclays  India,  said:  “Barclays is committed to supporting

young people to develop the skills to fulfil their potential. Through Building Young Futures, we are

able to empower these young women in India, teach them that they are equal to men, and help

provide them with the skills they need to become economically empowered individuals. Building

Young Futures is part of our global goal to support five million young people in becoming the next

generation of achievers.”

Louis-George  Arsenault,  Representative  for  UNICEF  India,  explained:  “Adolescence is an age of

opportunity and UNICEF is committed to investing in young people and enabling them to transform

society. The Deepshikha programme, which is currently being implemented in some districts of

Maharashtra with the support of Barclays, has been extremely successful in providing girls and

young women with the skills and confidence to start their own enterprises and we look forward to

expanding this programme across the state and more widely in India.”

Priyanka met  girls  including  Sadhana  Chaudhari,  who  was  discriminated against  by  her  family and

had  to  leave  school  early  with  limited  skills.  Sadhana,  now  23  years  old,  runs  her  own  tailoring

business, and is setting up a group sanitary napkin business with other girls from her village.  She has

become a leader in the programme, or Prerika as they are locally known, and is determined to pass

what she has learnt onto other women in the community.

“Joining the Building Young Futures Deepshikha programme was a turning point in my life,”  says

Sadhana. “The Building Young Futures/ Deepshikha programme has given me confidence and now I

can support my family. I come to the training as I learn a lot from this. I cannot do anything sitting

at home, so I must come out and take charge of my own destiny.”