- Multi-year partnership targets girls and young women aged 14–20 across India
- Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh to anchor the initiative’s initial rollout
- Digital and financial literacy, leadership and life skills at the heart of the programme
- Two-year initiative to combine in-person and digital training with grassroots outreach
- Girl Effect to support curriculum development and learning resources
NE WOMEN EMPOWERMENT BUREAU
MUMBAI / NEW YORK, OCT 16
Can equipping a girl with confidence, financial knowledge and the power to make informed choices transform not just her future, but that of her family and community? Reliance Foundation and The Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation are joining forces to pursue precisely that ambition, launching a multi-year partnership aimed at empowering one million girls and young women across India.
The initiative will focus on adolescents and young women aged 14 to 20 in rural and urban communities, beginning in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, with plans to expand to other parts of the country. Its central objective is to equip participants with practical life skills, digital and financial literacy, leadership capabilities and a clearer understanding of the educational and livelihood opportunities available to them.
The programme seeks to help young women navigate the transition from adolescence to adulthood with greater confidence, strengthen their decision-making abilities and make informed choices about education, employment and entrepreneurship.
Isha Ambani: Every girl must have the opportunity to realise her aspirations
Announcing the partnership, Isha Ambani, Director, Reliance Foundation, underlined the importance of enabling girls to dream, lead and fulfil their potential.
“I believe every girl should have the confidence to dream big, the courage to lead, and the opportunity to fulfil her aspirations. I am delighted that through this partnership, Reliance Foundation and The Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation are uniting to equip one million girls and young women with the resilience they need to realize their full potential – igniting a powerful transformation that extends from the individual to her household and to the entire community.”
The emphasis on confidence and resilience reflects the programme’s broader ambition: to go beyond imparting information and help girls develop the agency to make decisions about their education, safety, mobility and future careers.
Estée Lauder: Building skills for the modern workforce
Stéphane de La Faverie, President and Chief Executive Officer, The Estée Lauder Companies, and President, The Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation, said the partnership would help create opportunities for girls and young women to acquire skills needed to participate and thrive in the modern workforce.
“We are proud to partner with Reliance Foundation to create more opportunities for girls and young women in India that will build the skills they need to participate and thrive in the modern workforce. The Estée Lauder Companies was founded by an extraordinary woman entrepreneur, and today, women represent more than 80% of our global workforce. We know the tremendous impact that women can have when they have the opportunity to learn, lead and build their own futures. We are excited to work together to help more women and girls realize their potential and shape what comes next.”
The partnership brings together organisations whose stated commitments to women’s advancement span education, opportunity, livelihoods and entrepreneurship. It also comes amid growing recognition that expanding women’s participation in the workforce is important to India’s economic and social progress.
Four pillars to strengthen confidence, capability and choice
Jointly developed by Reliance Foundation and The Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation, the programme will focus on four interconnected areas:
- Life skills: Building confidence and self-esteem, strengthening decision-making and leadership, and developing the ability to navigate everyday challenges.
- Digital and financial literacy: Enabling girls to use digital tools and financial services safely, effectively and with greater confidence.
- Choice and agency: Helping participants make informed decisions while navigating social and cultural influences affecting their safety, mobility, education and employment opportunities.
- Future pathways: Providing information on educational courses, livelihoods, employment and entrepreneurship so that girls can better understand and evaluate the options available to them.
Together, these areas are intended to help participants translate learning into practical choices, whether pursuing further education, entering the workforce or exploring entrepreneurial opportunities.
Girl Effect to Support Learning Resources and Curriculum
The initiative is being designed with support from non-profit organisation Girl Effect, which will bring its expertise to curriculum development and the creation of learning resources for girls.
The two-year programme will combine in-person and digital training with capacity-building initiatives, implemented in collaboration with grassroots partners. The approach is intended to help deliver learning opportunities across communities with differing needs and circumstances.
Building on Long-standing Commitments to Women’s Advancement
For Reliance Foundation, the partnership builds on its work since 2010 to expand opportunities in education, sports and livelihoods while strengthening the agency of women and girls.
The Estée Lauder Companies and its Charitable Foundation, meanwhile, have worked with non-governmental organisations in India for more than two decades, supporting initiatives in health, education and entrepreneurship aimed at enabling women and girls to thrive.
The new collaboration brings these commitments into a programme focused on adolescent girls and young women at a formative stage of their lives.
Its ultimate test will lie not merely in the number of participants reached, but in how effectively the learning translates into greater confidence, informed choices and access to meaningful opportunities.
By placing life skills, financial and digital literacy, and personal agency at the centre of its approach, the partnership seeks to help a generation of young women move towards their futures with greater knowledge, independence and ambition.