NSDC & NGOBOX Collaborated for ‘India Impact Forum 2020’

National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) partnered with NGOBOX to organize India Impact Forum 2020 in Mumbai today. The forum brought together prominent corporate leaders and government dignitaries to discuss and deliberate on the methods that can create a large social impact in the economy through solicitous corporate social responsibility (CSR), philanthropy and impact investment. It also served as a common platform for these industry stalwarts to network and explore significant collaborations as well as co-create solutions with efficient planning to enhance CSR contribution by corporates. The one-day event had 12 thoughtfully curated sessions and three masterclass sessions on mainstream sectors to communicate innovative ideas to make CSR central to a company’s ongoing social impact.

The forum provided CSR leaders and philanthropic organizations with an opportunity to discuss the nuances of socially and environmentally beneficial project design and explore partnerships to create high impact sustainable projects. The sessions also highlighted the crucial role of CSR in achieving Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision of making India the ‘Skilling Capital of the World’. In line with the theme, Mr. Venkatesh Saravasiddhi, Senior Head – CSR & Industry partnerships, NSDC moderated a panel discussion on ‘Best-fit CSR and philanthropic design in local, regional and national context’. Mr. Neeraj Kumar Lal, Head CSR, Arvind Ltd., Mr. Saurabh Singh, President, ICICI Foundation, Mr. Rishi Pathania, Head – CSR, UPL Ltd. Mr. Sitaram Gupta, Executive Director, Lupin Human Welfare & Research Foundation(LHWRF) and Ms. Poonam Sharma, Head-Sustainability, Asia-Pacific, Head CSR – Colgate India and CGBS(Pvt.) Ltd., Colgate Palmolive joined him on the panel.

NSDC under the aegis of the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship has been actively involved in supporting the right institutions and infrastructure for scaling up the skilling ecosystem in the country. It collaborates with private players, corporates, state governments, small and medium sized businesses and academic institutions to co-create solutions for skill development that could generate large employment opportunities for the youth. NSDC has also struck partnerships with over 50 industry partners and public sector undertakings to implement their CSR programs towards skill development.  The skill projects are designed keeping target beneficiaries and employment opportunities in focus for a scalable and maximum impact.

The agenda of the session focused on participation of corporates and start-ups joining hands with the government to ensure that training efforts are relevant and sustainable. Involvement of all relevant stakeholders, focus on policy priority areas and pooled CSR spent, could be few of the areas for industries to collaboratively build a strategic and innovative skill model.  CSR, Philanthropy and Impact Investment are subjects of greater importance and hold the power to provide sustainable growth in many sectors including education and vocational skilling. NSDC in partnership with NGOBOX created a platform through India Impact Forum 2020 to encourage industry leaders to come forward and proactively contribute and align their CSR missions towards enabling a bright future for the country’s competent workforce.

The Forum provided meaningful opportunities and resources to implementing agencies who are looking for new avenues of corporate partnerships. On the other hand, companies/donor agencies also received a credible platform to create new connections to partner with and deliver high impact CSR projects. By discussing the need to engage with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a way that helps in developing strategies to manage the social and environmental performance of companies, the forum gave importance to CSR lead initiatives and built an integral dialogue on creating social impact.