British Telecommunications: Ambitious goals for young girls

BT (British Telecommunications plc) and the British Asian Trust have launched a three-year programme that will use digital technology to help improve education, employability, health choices, and autonomy for young girls in India. The programme will use apps, videos and other interactive digital technologies to empower young people, with a special focus on adolescent girls, in India. Working with innovators and sector leaders, it aims to create a sustainable movement for change that will increase the opportunities available to girls in the 10″19 age group.

Working in and around BT’s operations in Gurugram, Delhi, Bengaluru and Kolkata, the programme is expected to help improve education opportunities, health and skills of around 500,000 young people. It will explore the different ways technology can be used to help them as well as use BT’s technology and the skills of its employees to positively impact them, focusing on:

• Education of girls and boys in India: Building a foundation for lifelong learning and skills development
• Employability of adolescent girls: Improving their skills in key areas and encouraging their curiosity and passion for learning
• Health choices: Increasing the confidence of young women and their ability to make decisions about their own health
• Autonomy: Helping women and girls to understand their rights and gain greater control over their future

The four partners chosen under the BT-British Asian Trust partnership are Breakthrough, IT for Change, Going To School, and Splash.

CB’s questions on preliminary study, specific goals, rationale behind choosing the four partners, and impact assessment did not receive any response from either organisation.