Private sector, civil society collaborate to launch LiftEd, support Govt’s NIPUN Bharat Mission

Up to four million children across India are expected to benefit from LiftEd

Leaders across civil society and private sector came together on International Day of Education to launch LiftEd (Learning and Innovation in FLN to Transform Education), an initiative that is expected to help four million children across India over five years and bolster the Government of India’s NIPUN Bharat Mission. The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 24 January as International Day of Education, in celebration of the role of education for peace and development.

LiftEd aims to strengthen the ‘building blocks’ of learning through a dual approach: on-ground and at-home interventions, to equip children with the ability to read and understand basic text and solve basic mathematical problems by the end of grade three.

The on-ground education partners of the programme will be working with state governments and school facilitators in five geographies, namely, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi-NCR, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar, to improve FLN levels for public school children across classes one to three.

“With all partners working together to achieve these results, the diverse coalition that powers LiftEd is strengthening India’s education ecosystem, unlocking young India’s potential, and improving life chances for millions,” the coalition partners said in a release.

“Recognising that collaborative action from the private sector and civil society can act as an ‘impact multiplier’ to bolster the government’s commitment to furthering India’s education goals, LiftEd brings a vibrant and diverse mix of education experts together to improve FLN in India, raising up to Rs 166 crore,” the release read.

The Government of India identifies foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) as an “urgent and necessary prerequisite to learning”. In 2021, it launched the landmark NIPUN Bharat Mission to equip every child aged 4-10 years with FLN skills by 2026-27.

Some of the founding partners of LiftEd include the Maitri Trust, Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, Reliance Foundation, Standard Chartered Bank, and USAID. The British Asian Trust is the programme leader and Central Square Foundation and Dalberg Advisors are design and technical partners.

“Providing children with a strong start to their learning journey ensures them a bright future where they can fully realise their potential. Reliance Foundation shares this vision with all the consortium partners who have come together to launch LiftEd to foster learning and innovation in foundational literacy and numeracy. Bringing together the consortium’s collective strength and experience and aligning with the Government of India's NIPUN Bharat, LiftEd could prove life-changing for millions of children across India,” sauid Jagannatha Kumar, CEO, Reliance Foundation.

LiftEd has also launched an EdTech Accelerator to develop digital solutions to improve FLN for low-income students in India. Eight innovative partners – Amira Learning, Chimple, Ei Mindspark, Pratham Education Foundation, Rocket Learning, Sesame Workshop, ThinkZone, and Top Parent – have been chosen to be a part of the EdTech Accelerator following a rigorous selection process.

Shaveta Sharma-Kukreja, CEO & MD, Central Square Foundation, said, “LiftEd resonates closely with CSF's core mission to improve FLN outcomes at scale in India, both in schools and at home. A key component of LiftEd is nurturing the development of high-quality EdTech solutions through the EdTech Accelerator. Among the numerous EdTech organisations in India, only a small proportion focus on foundational learning, and even fewer are built for low-income users. The LiftEd Accelerator adopts a unique approach to solving this by catalysing the supply of diverse, innovative EdTech solutions and by galvanising demand for at-home learning, hence meaningfully contributing to achieving NIPUN Bharat's learning goals.”

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