NEW DELHI: NITI Aayog on Friday announced the signing of a Statement of Intent (SoI) with Bollywood actor and entrepreneur Sushant Singh Rajput, to collaborate and support NITI's flagship initiative, the Women Entrepreneurship Platform.
The agreement was signed in the presence of Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog by Anna Roy, Adviser (Industry), NITI Aayog and Sushant Singh Rajput.
"NITI Aayog has always emphasised the importance of reaching out to the youth and inviting them to engage with the various policies of the government. Sushant Singh Rajput, through his work and as a youth icon, embodies the energetic and spirited masses shaping the country's growth narrative today. As brand ambassador of WEP, which already includes over a 1,000 women entrepreneurs, this partnership will further drive our mission to establish a vibrant, enabling entrepreneurial ecosystem for the women of the country," Mr Kant said, highlighting the importance of including young role-models in popularising government initiatives.
Commenting on his association with NITI Aayog, Sushant said, "I am honored to be associated with NITI Aayog and be a part of India's transformative journey. NITI Aayog is doing incredible work by empowering thousands of women in our country through the Women Entrepreneurship Platform and revolutionizing the cashless economy by introducing a simple digital payments app - BHIM. As a brand ambassador, it gives me an opportunity to drive the Digital India movement and support women entrepreneurs in India."
Sushant will also be promoting NITI Aayog's digital payments campaign which looks towards transforming India into a less-cash economy.
The actor will endorse the Women Entrepreneurship Platform and encourage use of Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) application by appearing in various video, print and social media campaigns of NITI Aayog.
He would also be supporting NITI Aayog in promoting the Women Transforming India Awards 2018, the theme for which is 'Women and Entrepreneurship' and whose nominations are currently ongoing.
With a collective vision of empowering people and communities, this partnership will see NITI Aayog and Sushant Singh Rajput work together to emphasize the Government's commitment towards building an inclusive, digitally-empowered, entrepreneurial India.
Sushant Singh Rajput and Varun Mathur, through their recently launched company 'Innsaei Ventures', shall be setting aside a corpus of Rs 20 crore, which shall be invested in start-ups established by women entrepreneurs.
NITI Aayog's WEP was launched on March 8, 2018 on the occasion of the International Women's Day.
The initiative is aimed at building an ecosystem for women across India to realize their entrepreneurial aspirations, scale-up innovative initiatives and chalk-out sustainable, long-term strategies for their businesses.
It aims to power a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem through an enabling network of industry collaborations, partnerships, mentors and peer-to-peer connect.