Accenture and the Accenture Foundations have made a US$3.3 million grant to Plan International to help the nonprofit provide skills training to 4,000 disadvantaged youth in Brazil, Colombia and El Salvador through its Youth Employment Solutions program.
The grant, which includes both cash and pro-bono services, will enable Plan International to secure employment for 3,000 of these youth. It also will help the nonprofit to replicate its successful Youth Employment Solutions program in Latin America, where unemployment for youth is often three times higher than for adults. The program provides highly marginalized youth with the technical and professional skills demanded by businesses, as well as job placement support, by forging strategic partnerships between training organizations and employers with open positions.
This latest grant, which brings Accenture’s total contributions to Plan International to more than US$10 million worldwide since 2010, is part of Accenture’s corporate citizenship initiative, Skills to Succeed, which is equipping more than 3 million people around the world with the skills to get a job or build a business. As part of the initiative, in 2010 Accenture helped Plan International launch the Youth Employment Solutions program in Asia, enabling more than 5,800 youth there to secure employment.
“The Youth Employment Solutions program opens the door for young people to find employment, pursue their passions, and contribute to the economy,” said Jill Huntley, managing director of Global Corporate Citizenship at Accenture. “Our work with Plan International is helping identify new insights and scale proven solutions that increase the number of young people in long-term, secure jobs.”
Accenture’s grant also will help Plan International identify strategic opportunities to leverage digital technologies. One such example is a proprietary Accenture tool that accurately diagnoses individuals’ employability, helps hone their foundational skills through e-learning courses, and measures post-training progress toward employment.
“Working alongside Accenture, we combine our expertise and ability to help disadvantaged youth access the skills education and training needed to further their potential and secure employment,” said Nigel Chapman, CEO of Plan International. “We are excited that the new Latin America program will build on the success we have had in Asia, and enable these youth to provide for themselves and their families.”
As a part of its contribution, Accenture will support Plan International with pro-bono consulting services in Brazil and Colombia to help pinpoint country-specific employment needs and innovative market-driven approaches to employ more youth in the private and public sectors.
