Standard Chartered Foundation

About Standard Chartered Foundation

The Standard Chartered Foundation is a charitable foundation that tackles inequality by promoting greater economic inclusion for disadvantaged young people from low-income households, particularly women and girls and people with visual impairments. Futuremakers by Standard Chartered is the Bank’s global youth economic empowerment initiative to provide skills development opportunities to boost employability and business training to encourage entrepreneurship.

Our partnership with Standard Chartered Foundation

Our partnership with Standard Chartered Foundation currently spans two initiatives:

Unlocking Opportunities for Inclusive Financial Growth

Running from September 2024 to August 2027, the ‘Unlocking Opportunities for Inclusive Financial Growth’ programme, funded by Standard Chartered Foundation as part of Futuremakers by Standard Chartered, is a transformative three-year initiative designed to address the financial barriers faced by young, underserved entrepreneurs in Kenya, Nigeria, and Vietnam. Working with local YBI members — Somo in Kenya, Fate Foundation in Nigeria, and Startup Vietnam Foundation —the programme aims to empower 884 young entrepreneurs to create and sustain over 2,700 jobs, driving social transformation and economic growth.

Empower and Elevate – Enabling Inclusive Futures

‘Empower and Elevate – Enabling Inclusive Futures‘ is a programme funded by Standard Chartered Foundation as part of Futuremakers by Standard Chartered to equip young entrepreneurs in Brazil, Poland, Türkiye and the UK with the tools and resources they need to grow and scale their business and create jobs and economic growth in their communities. Priority is given to supporting typically marginalised young entrepreneurs, including women, people with disabilities, refugees and migrants, young people belonging to minority communities, and those from rural or low-income backgrounds.
The programme consists of four projects, implemented by our members Aliança Empreendedora (Brazil), Habitat (Türkiye), The School for Social Entrepreneurs (UK), and Youth Business Poland.

Past initiatives

Initiatives

Empower and Elevate – Enabling Inclusive Futures Programme Overview Empower and Elevate – Enabling Inclusive Futures is a programme funded by Standard Chartered Foundation as part of Futuremakers by Standard Chartered to equip young entrepreneurs in Brazil, Poland, Türkiye and the UK with the tools and resources they need to grow and scale their business and create jobs and economic growth in […]

Unlocking Opportunities for Inclusive Financial Growth Programme Overview Young underserved entrepreneurs face significant barriers to accessing finance that hinder their growth and limit their potential. Running from September 2024 to August 2027, the ‘Unlocking Opportunities for Inclusive Financial Growth’ programme, funded by Standard Chartered Foundation as part of Futuremakers by Standard Chartered, is a transformative three-year initiative designed to address the […]

Success Stories

Luu Thi Hoa’s story

Vietnam

When starting her business, Luu Thi Hoa encountered two main challenges, the first one being disapproval from her family and husband who wanted her to stick to her 9 to 5 job. Secondly, she lives in a low-income area of Vietnam where the entrepreneurship ecosystem is still in its very early stages.

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Polina Khlibanovska’s story

Poland

Polina Khlibanovska is the founder of Smart Kindengarten in Warsaw a bussiness she set up after fleeing the war in Ukraine.

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Sam Odongo’s story

Ugada

“Honey can be a dynamic sector of the green economy. When beekeeping and production are done right, honey producers help safeguard biodiversity, which is what I want for my community in Adekokwok sub county, Lira District, Uganda.”

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Veronica Uwajeh’s story

Nigeria

As someone who is living with a disability herself and holds a degree in education, Veronica embarked on an entrepreneurial journey to solve this problem and started Karisma Inclusive School as well as Karisma Abilities Foundation in Lagos, Nigeria.

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