Dehradun, 8 March 2020: IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced a collaboration with Samagra Sikhsha Uttarakhand, the Government of Uttarakhand’s education mission,  to introduce the 'IBM STEM for Girls' program in 130 secondary and higher secondary schools across five districts in the state. The program will advance the skills and careers of close to 25,600 students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields. The collaboration is part of a three-year program between IBM and Uttarakhand State Government with the American India Foundation as the implementation partner to increase the participation of girls and women in STEM careers.

The demand for a highly qualified workforce in India is quickly increasing with the acceleration of emerging technologies. The ‘IBM STEM for Girls’ program features a comprehensive approach that builds technical capabilities as well as life and self-actualization skills. 'STEM for Girls' is an IBM Corporate Social Responsibility initiative primarily aimed at improving education-to-work and career pathways for girls who are studying in Government schools. The program includes imparting training in digital literacy, coding and technology skills, 21^st-century skills, and career development to enable girls’ empowerment and increase their interest in STEM education and careers.

“Empowering female students through education that makes them capable of achieving success is a key imperative of the government. Our collaboration with IBM will help female students equip themselves with technical skills and expertise in STEM subjects. It will also impart the life-skills they need to solve real-world challenges utilizing good technology to make a difference to the community,” said Dr. Mukul Kumar Sati, Additional State Project Director -Samagra Shiksha Uttarakhand.

“Expertise in emerging technologies is becoming a key requirement for most industries and our youth need to acquire those skills to improve their employability. The government has highlighted this through initiatives like Skill India, and IBM has been at the forefront in aligning our skilling & training programs to empower students and make them future-ready. Our collaboration with Uttarakhand State Government will help students, especially female students, improve their skillsets and build a fulfilling career,” said Manoj Balachandran, Head, Corporate Social Responsibility, IBM India Pvt Ltd.

In March 2020, IBM announced a significant engagement in India to advance the skills and careers of more than 200,000 (2 lakh) female students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields. Today, IBM has collaborations with state governments including — Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Orissa, Punjab, Bihar, Gujarat, Punjab, Assam, and plans are underway to widen this to several other states.

IBM new collar skilling initiatives in India also include:

1.   A two-year Advanced Diploma Programme in emerging technologies created in collaboration with the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, which will be available to 100 Industrial Training Institutes (ITI), including 50 all-women ITIs, over the next three years. IBM will also offer internships of up to five months to some students, presenting an opportunity for them to further deepen their skills and understanding in emerging fields such as Cloud and AI. Currently, 40 ITIs have been enlisted to initiate the two-year diploma program in this academic year.

2.   As part of IBM’s ongoing engagement with the Government of India targeting young innovators through the Atal Tinkering Labs initiative, some 4,000 mentors and 600,000 mentees will benefit from a unique AI-powered Mentor Platform. Developed with the IBM Watson cognitive engine, the platform monitors mentor and mentee interactions to provide personalized support to those using the platform. IBM has thus far on-boarded 2,500 mentors, including 300 IBMers, to this platform by collaborating with the national Mentor of Change mission.

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