The partnership was launched in the presence of Smt Smriti Irani, Union Minister of Women & Child Development and other distinguished guests like Nandita Bakhshi, President and CEO, Bank of the West and Shri Rajeev Chandrashekhar, Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship
The Loomba Foundation and USISPF also addressed the poverty, injustice and complete lack of opportunities for millions of widows across the globe at this reception
Newย Delhi:ย Theย Loombaย Foundation,ย anย internationalย UNย accredited NGO dedicated to improving the lives of widows in partnership with the US India Strategic Forumโs philanthropic Foundation โ The US India Friendship Alliance (USIFA)ย launchedย aย projectย todayย toย empowerย 5000ย widowsย andย theirย childrenย inย India. The beneficiaries will be provided skills training by the implementing partner Lok Bharti.
Among the distinguished attendees were Shiv Nadar, Founder of HCL Technologies; Raj Subramaniam, CEO of FedEx; Tim Roemer, former US Ambassador to India; Veena Reddy, USAID India Chief; and Scott Nathan, US Development Finance Corporation CEO.
The reception discussed how The Loomba Foundation and USISPF will jointly work to create an ecosystem that allows widows in India an opportunity to sustain themselves as well as become empowered and self-sufficient financially. The Loomba Foundation and USIFA announced the funding amount of USD 400000 to benefit the widows in India, which will be distributed over a period of two years, 2023 and 2024.
Lord Raj Loomba, CBE, Founder and Chairman Trustee of The Loomba Foundation, said:ย โWith rising awareness, we have seen increased efforts from the government as well as the public to tackle the various challenges faced by widows. It gives us great pride to see how far we have come in the journey of empowering them towards an independent life. We look forward to the continued support from our partners and supporters as we progress on our mission to transform the lives ofย widows.โ
Dr Mukesh Aghi, President & CEO, USISPF,ย added: โWe are proud to be partneringย todayย withย Theย Loombaย Foundationย toย contributeย toย thisย importantย causeย and empower the lives of widows in need of assistance through financial support and skill training. We believe that for the success of the Prime Ministerโs vision of achieving a USD five trillion economy by 2030, women will play a driving role in theย workforce.โ
The Loomba Foundation and USISPF also addressed the poverty, injustice and complete lack of opportunities for millions of widows across the globe at this reception. This event was intended to contribute towards raising awareness of the plight of widows in India whose struggle for daily means and survival is a big question on the society at large. Therefore, this Indo-US partnership initiative is an effort towards empowering the widows of India financially, mentally and socially.
