Mobile platforms driving social and financial inclusion
NEW YORK - Thursday, October 1st 2015 [ME NewsWire]
(BUSINESS WIRE)-- At the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting closing plenary, Tata Communications and MasterCard announced a CGI Commitment to Action to financially empower 25,000 women in the developing world, part of a larger vision to ultimately reach 100 million women. The global telecommunications leader and the leader in global payments technology join forces with a unique network of partners including Brightstar Corp, Kiva, Tone, Trickle Up and the Hidary Foundation to bring their shared vision to life over the next five years through access to transformative mobile platforms comprising a range of financial, health and education applications and services.
“Three billion people will come online over the next decade primarily from the developing world. We now have our generation’s greatest opportunity to unshackle women from endless cycles of poverty and dependency by providing them with access to information and economic opportunities,” said Rangu Salgame, CEO, Growth Ventures Group, Tata Communications. ”With this program, Tata Communications and MasterCard are embarking on a journey to harness the long-term potential of the next 3 billion online.”
In developing countries, 200 million fewer women than men are online, and 300 million fewer women own a mobile phone1. Yet, research also shows that the impact of empowering women financially is tremendous starting with their ability to raise the living standard of the entire household given that they are more likely to spend their income on establishing healthier and sustainable lifestyles for their families.
“Two billion adults globally, the majority of them women, still don’t have a safe and easy way to receive, store and use their money,” said Walt Macnee, vice chairman of MasterCard. “We see an opportunity and responsibility to empower women with access to and control over their finances through digital financial tools. By financially including women around the globe, we take an important step towards poverty alleviation, equality and economic prosperity.”
Tata Communications, MasterCard and its network of partners will realize this vision by taking a non-linear implementation approach as is often taken in the technology sector. The program will kick-off with pilot projects in India, Nigeria, Indonesia and Guatemala, targeting 25,000 women, serving as microcosms. The replication of these microcosms will enable scale with a vision to reach 100 million women by 2020.
Please find more information at:
Next3B Website: www.Next3B.com
Video: https://youtu.be/BBo8D8HNBGI
Twitter hashtags: #Next3B and #100millionwomen
About Tata Communications
Tata Communications Limited (CIN no: L64200MH1986PLC039266) along with its subsidiaries (Tata Communications) is a leading global provider of A New World of Communications™. With a leadership position in emerging markets, Tata Communications leverages its advanced solutions capabilities and domain expertise across its global and pan-India network to deliver managed solutions to multi-national enterprises, service providers and Indian consumers.
The Tata Communications global network includes one of the most advanced and largest submarine cable networks and a Tier-1 IP network with connectivity to more than 240 countries and territories across 400 PoPs, as well as nearly 1 million square feet of data centre and collocation space worldwide.
Tata Communications’ depth and breadth of reach in emerging markets includes leadership in Indian enterprise data services and leadership in global international voice.
Tata Communications Limited is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange of India.
http://www.tatacommunications.com
Forward-looking and cautionary statements
Certain words and statements in this release concerning Tata Communications and its prospects, and other statements, including those relating to Tata Communications’ expected financial position, business strategy, the future development of Tata Communications’ operations, and the general economy in India, are forward-looking statements. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, including financial, regulatory and environmental, as well as those relating to industry growth and trend projections, which may cause actual results, performance or achievements of Tata Communications, or industry results, to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. The important factors that could cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from such forward-looking statements include, among others, failure to increase the volume of traffic on Tata Communications’ network; failure to develop new products and services that meet customer demands and generate acceptable margins; failure to successfully complete commercial testing of new technology and information systems to support new products and services, including voice transmission services; failure to stabilize or reduce the rate of price compression on certain of the company’s communications services; failure to integrate strategic acquisitions and changes in government policies or regulations of India and, in particular, changes relating to the administration of Tata Communications’ industry; and, in general, the economic, business and credit conditions in India. Additional factors that could cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from such forward-looking statements, many of which are not in Tata Communications’ control, include, but are not limited to, those risk factors discussed in Tata Communications Limited’s Annual Reports. The Annual Reports of Tata Communications Limited are available at www.tatacommunications.com. Tata Communications is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or alter its forward-looking statements.
About Mastercard
MasterCard (NYSE: MA), www.mastercard.com, is a technology company in the global payments industry. We operate the world’s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. MasterCard’s products and solutions make everyday commerce activities – such as shopping, traveling, running a business and managing finances – easier, more secure and more efficient for everyone. Follow us on Twitter @MasterCardNews, join the discussion on the Beyond the Transaction Blog and subscribe for the latest news on the Engagement Bureau.
About TrickleUp
Founded in 1979, Trickle Up’s (TU) singular focus is unleashing the potential of the poorest, hardest to reach women on earth, people not otherwise served by government or nonprofits. TU has provided hundreds of thousands of women with business training, seed capital to start or expand a business, and guidance on how to set up and manage a savings group. Trickle Up works in West Africa, North Africa, India and Latin America, with regional offices located in Guatemala, Burkina Faso and India, and headquarters in New York City. http://trickleup.org/
About Kiva
Kiva is the world’s first and largest crowdfunding platform for social good with a mission to connect people through lending to alleviate poverty. By lending as little as $25, anyone can help a borrower start or grow a business, go to school, access clean energy and realize their potential. Since 2005, Kiva and their growing global community of 1.4 million lenders have crowdfunded more than $750 million in microloans to over 1.6 million entrepreneurs in 80 countries, with a 98% repayment rate. http://www.kiva.org/
About Brightstar
Brightstar, a SoftBank Group Corp. subsidiary, is the world’s largest specialized wireless distributor and a leading provider of diversified services focused on enhancing the performance and results of the key participants in the wireless device value chain: manufacturers, operators and retailers. With a local presence in 50 countries, Brightstar operates in about 100 countries across six continents and serves 200 mobile network operators, 40,000 retailers, and 15,000 enterprise customers. Brightstar brings it global scale and position at the center of the wireless ecosystem™ to the commitment.
About Tone
Tone is a mobile communications company. Our mission is to increase access to mobile broadband by enabling people to better afford and control their content. We achieve this by marketing mobile data plans with local mobile operators around the world. Tone's data plans are affordable to the base of the pyramid and compelling to upscale subscribers. Helping to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, we work with local partners to develop and augment development programs by designing and distributing “activation" kits with phones, a data plan, compelling mobile content and a data collection module. Current program pilots are in the areas of women’s empowerment and ocean protection.
About the Clinton Global Initiative
Established in 2005 by President Bill Clinton, the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), an initiative of the Clinton Foundation, convenes global leaders to create and implement solutions to the world's most pressing challenges. CGI Annual Meetings have brought together 190 sitting and former heads of state, more than 20 Nobel Prize laureates, and hundreds of leading CEOs, heads of foundations and NGOs, major philanthropists, and members of the media. To date, members of the CGI community have made more than 3,200 Commitments to Action, which have improved the lives of over 430 million people in more than 180 countries.
In addition to the Annual Meeting, CGI convenes CGI America, a meeting focused on collaborative solutions to economic recovery in the United States; and CGI University (CGI U), which brings together undergraduate and graduate students to address pressing challenges in their community or around the world. This year, CGI also convened CGI Middle East & Africa, which brought together leaders across sectors to take action on pressing social, economic, and environmental challenges.
For more information, visit clintonglobalinitiative.org and follow us on Twitter @ClintonGlobal and Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/clintonglobalinitiative
1No Ceilings: The Full Participation Report, March 2015
Contacts
Tata Communications
Natalie Chak, +44 (0)7833 043 779
natalie.chak@tatacommunications.com
Hill & Knowlton Strategies
Neil Thomas, +44 (0)20 7416 3000
Neil.Thomas@hkstrategies.com
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