Happy Independence Day with AIF

Dear Friend,

 

I write to you on this meaningful day not only as AIF’s CEO, but also as a global citizen proud to call the world’s two largest democracies–India and the United States–home. Happy 77th Indian Independence Day!

 

India has much to celebrate today. Presently, 16.4% of her population (roughly 235 million) lives below the poverty line, down from 55% (roughly 640 million) a mere 15 years back. It is also no secret that India is one of the fastest growing industrial economies globally. This spectacular success notwithstanding, India remains home to the largest number of poor people in the world. The complexities of multidimensional poverty and its geographic focus (90% of the poor live in rural areas, concentrated in 8 “pockets of poverty” in the North), mean that AIF–and our government and civil society partners–have to be intentional about how we design and implement initiatives to pull people out of the intergenerational cycle of poverty.

 

Add to this the troubling trend of steeply declining female workforce participation (dropping to below 20% in 2022) and the disproportionate impact of climate change on the poor and vulnerable–which are the communities we serve–and you get a sense of the enormity of our work ahead.

 

This is where AIF’s vision of designing bold futures comes in. Built 22 years ago by the passionate Indian diaspora with the active support of then President Clinton and Prime Minister Vajpayee, AIF was conceived as a collective philanthropic platform bolstered by the pillars of service and civil society bridge-building between India and the US.

 

Since then, AIF has evolved into a juggernaut of social impact through our multi-pronged programs in education, livelihoods, and public health that bring stakeholders together to create sustainable, systemic impact at scale. We are motivated by our beneficiaries for their courage, our donors for their generosity, and India’s central and state governments for their partnership in helping us achieve this shared vision of equity and inclusion.

 

As a secular, non-partisan entity fueled by purpose, powered by partnerships, and inspired by impact, we have served over 16.5 million people across 36 states and union territories in India to date. There are many millions to go, and it is our privilege to be in the front lines of this war on poverty.

 

Our vision rests on the universal principle that education, opportunity, and health are not the prerogative of a few, but the birthright of all. We thank our thriving Indian diaspora in the US for supporting our mission, and we look forward to the coming decades with boldness, optimism, and data-driven vision.

 

After all, India lives within each of us–Happy Birthday to us all!

 

With gratitude,

Nishant Pandey

CEO

American India Foundation