Singapore International Foundation Builds Capacity Amongst Indian Social Entrepreneurs to Make The World a Better Place
35 young social entrepreneurs from across India convened in Bangalore for a two-day workshop as part of the Singapore International Foundation’s (SIF) 2019 series of Young Social Entrepreneurs (YSE) Overseas Workshops in India and China this year. Over the past two days, these social entrepreneurs were equipped with entrepreneurial know-how, as well as skills in leadership, marketing, business acumen, measuring social impact and pitching, to further scale-up their social enterprises.
Besides connecting and learning from 36 speakers and mentors from diverse sectors in the India and Singapore social entrepreneurship ecosystems, these young changemakers would also join the global YSE network of over 1,000 changemakers from 30 nationalities.
Celebrating 10 Years of Young Social Entrepreneurs
The YSE Overseas Workshop in Bangalore also celebrates the 10th anniversary of the signature YSE programme. Since 2010, the YSE programme has nurtured a youth network of global changemakers with innovative business ideas focused on social good. Over a four-day workshop held in Singapore in March, the tenth edition of the YSE main programme saw 15 social enterprises from Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Singapore and Thailand kickstarting their eight-month journey. Over the next few months, they will go through a mentorship with leading business professionals and experienced entrepreneurs and an experiential study visit in July, in Shanghai, China. They will regroup in October to pitch for up to SGD 20,000 each to launch or scale up their social enterprises. Read more about these aspiring changemakers here.
To add on to the year-long celebration of the YSE milestone, the SIF also invited 15 social enterprises from its global ecosystem of YSE alumni and partners from Singapore, India, Indonesia and Malaysia to showcase their social causes at its inaugural Bazaar for Good in April 2019. These inspiring social enterprises – including Indian social enterprise Help Us Green which recycles waste flowers into eco-friendly products made by women from Dalit and other marginalised communities – shared about their work and offered a range of food, drinks, wellness, and lifestyle products.
The YSE Bangalore Overseas Workshop is yet another collaborative project in India in business & livelihood – one of the key focus areas of the SIF’s work. It also marks another milestone in the 24-year friendship between the SIF and India to collaborate on projects that uplift lives and strengthen bonds between our peoples.
About Singapore International Foundation:
The Singapore International Foundation makes friends for a better world. We build enduring relationships between Singaporeans and world communities, and harness these friendships to enrich lives and effect positive change. Our work is anchored in the belief that cross-cultural interactions provide insights that strengthen understanding. These exchanges inspire action and enable collaborations for good. Our programmes bring people together to share ideas, skills and experiences in areas such as healthcare, education, the environment, arts and culture, as well as livelihood and business. We do this because we all can, and should do our part to build a better world, one we envision as peaceful, inclusive and offering opportunities for all. Find out more at www.sif.org.sg
