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Calling all potential partners!

Attention: Are you an NGO working with girls in the following countries: India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Nigeria, or Jordan? Are you interested in partnering with us on Goal?

We are activitely seeking potential partners and will shortly be sending out requests for information. If you think you might be a good match, email us now!

Big BIG news!

We've been teasing for a while now that we're going global with Goal, but now the news is official! See the press release below for more exciting details, and get in touch if you have ideas, questions, or comments.

Standard Chartered Bank’s Goal to empower adolescent girls through sport

Expansion of programme will deliver vital life skills to 100,000 girls over four years

London, 5 October 2009 – Standard Chartered Bank has committed to a large scale expansion of its Goal programme, aiming to empower 100,000 adolescent girls over the next four years. Goal will bring its combination of sport training and life skills education to five countries across Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

The announcement was made yesterday by Peter Sands, Group Chief Executive, Standard Chartered, at the second meeting of the World Bank Private Sector Gender Leaders Forum. He commented, “Standard Chartered realizes that women are key drivers of economic development in its markets. Goal gives young women in deprived communities the skills and confidence they need to fulfill their full potential and support their families, communities, and economies for years to come.”

The global expansion of Goal will target girls in India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Nigeria, and Jordan with a training programme including sport, financial literacy, health and hygiene, communication skills and rights. In addition to direct participants, the expansion is expected to reach an estimated 5 million family and community members.

A number of studies have shown a strong return on investment for programmes focused directly on women and girls. In India for example, where Goal began as a pilot in 2006, an estimated $32.6 billion in growth per year is lost due to girls out of school.[1] Further, it’s been shown that when women and girls earn income, they reinvest 90 percent of it into their families.[2]

Standard Chartered is now in the process of identifying NGO partners with deep local knowledge of their communities to deliver the programme alongside staff volunteers.

At its core, Goal is about transformation and building self-confidence, empowering girls with limited opportunities in the past to create a better future for themselves and for their families. Rakhi, 17, a Goal Champion from Delhi said: “When I joined Goal, I never talked to anyone from the group. My father was against my joining the program, but now his opinions have changed. I am more confident and can talk to anyone without fear. My brother once remarked in front of some guests at home, that Rakhi will definitely achieve something in life. I felt so proud. Someday, I will prove that I am no less than my brothers.”

[1]Plan International, Paying the price: The economic cost of failing to educate girls [2008]
[2]Phil Borges, with foreword by Madeleine Albright, Women Empowered: Inspiring Change in the Emerging World [2007]

-Ends-

Notes to editors:


About Goal

Goal is a Standard Chartered Bank community investment initiative which uses sport and life skills education to transform the lives of adolescent girls. The programme empowers disadvantaged girls living in urban settings for personal and economic development, providing knowledge and offering a safe place to play.



Goal covers four core content areas – communication, health and hygiene, rights, and financial literacy – that are delivered along with sport training by NGO partners, each with deep local knowledge of their communities. In India, Standard Chartered works in partnership with the Naz Foundation using netball as the sport component.

Since 2006, Goal has directly reached 500 girls, and touched nearly 25,000 families and community members across two cities in India. The programme plans to expand globally in 2010, reaching 100,000 girls in five countries.

For more information, see www.goal-girls.com



Standard Chartered – leading the way in Asia, Africa and the Middle East


Standard Chartered PLC, listed on both London and Hong Kong stock exchanges, ranks among the top 25 companies in the FTSE-100 by market capitalisation. The London-headquartered Group has operated for over 150 years in some of the world's most dynamic markets, leading the way in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Its income and profits have more than doubled over the last five years primarily as a result of organic growth.


Standard Chartered aspires to be the best international bank for its customers across its markets. The Group earns around 90 per cent of its income and profits in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, from its Wholesale and Consumer Banking businesses. The Group has over 1600 branches and outlets located in over 70 countries. The extraordinary growth of its markets and businesses creates exciting and challenging international career opportunities.


Leading by example to be the right partner for its stakeholders, the Group is committed to building a sustainable business over the long term and is trusted worldwide for upholding high standards of corporate governance, social responsibility, environmental protection and employee diversity. It employs around 70,000 people, nearly half of whom are women. The Group's employees are of 125 nationalities, of which about 70 are represented in the senior management.

For more information on Standard Chartered, please visit www.standardchartered.com

Delhi Closing Ceremonies

We're so proud of our 150 Goal graduates this year from Delhi!

Aali Gaon and Jaitpur held their ceremonies in June. Geraldine Matchaba and Karuna Bhatia from Standard Chartered in Mumbai were guests of honor. Thr girls showcased dances and Hindi songs, and were addressed by Naz Executive Director Anjali Gopalan who reminded them to take their achievements and think about their own economic independence (always good to think big!).

Two graduates, Nidhi and Lakshmi shared their own stories - and with their certificates (and new shoes) in hand, the girls played a netball match.

Our Deepalaya girls graduated in August, with Sonali and Naureen acting as masters of ceremony. Dances, songs, and netball were also the events of the day, and the girls were honoured to be addressed by Rotarian T.K. Mathew, the founder member of the Deepalaya Board. He spoke about the importance of education for the girl child and taking up issues that target young girls and women. He highlighted how through Goal girls were provided opportunities to develop their personality and excel. He encouraged the students to get involved in Goal and aspire to do better in their lives.

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We would be very remiss here if we didn't take the time to make a very special thank you to Sharon Sethi as well, our outgoing Delhi volunteer coordinator. Sharon has been the heart and soul of Goal in Delhi since day 1, and we can't thank her enough for all she's done.

(Here's Sharon and I in Delhi in January)

Congratulations Mumbai girls!

Congratulations to all the girls from Globe Mills and Hamara Foundation in Mumbai who have completed the Goal programme. The girls were commended in a ceremony on Saturday.

Special thanks to Namrata, Pallavi, Vrushali, and Nayana who have done such an incredible job organising everything as our coaches and Goal Champions in Mumbai. And thanks as well to Standard Chartered staff who were there to applaud our new graduates.

Pictures to follow soon!

New York Times!

My favourite newspaper had an excellent Sunday magazine issue recently on why women's rights are "the cause of our time."

Every article in there was really stellar, especially the lead piece, so it's excellent recommended reading. Mostly it's just nice to see that everyone else in the world is starting to realise the importance of programmes like Goal have not just on women, but on the world.

They also asked for photo submissions - see Goal in the second row, all the way to the right.

Tell Us About Yourself!

It's been a busy summer and promises to be an even busier autumn for Goal. We're getting ready to launch the new programme year in Delhi, Mumbai, and new location Chennai. Over here in London we've been busy with preparations for our international roll-out. Our aim will be to reach 100,000 girls by the end of 2012. More details and locations to come.

We've noticed a bit of new traffic to the site recently (thanks!). Leave a comment below to let us know who you are and how you heard about Goal!