Create 4000 high school graduates in India

In 2015, Magic Bus launched its first series of Youth Livelihood Centers across India.  These centers serve as skills training hubs in the disadvantaged communities in which Magic Bus works.  Every year tens of thousands of impoverished youth across India proudly become the first secondary school graduates in their family, but don't have the access to markets that is required to get a job.

The Magic Bus Youth Livelihood program is designed for these youth in mind.  It is a one year program that coincides with the youth's final year in high school.  The program trains the youth in computer skills, interviewing skills, and resume building skills that are vital to securing employment.  This cohort of students also serve as a network for one another where they can study and practice together.  

On March 4th, Magic Bus held its first ever Convocation and Employment Assembly for graduates of this first batch of the Youth Livelihoods program in Delhi.  The photo shows Mamta sharing her inpiring story with the audience.

When she was 16, Mamta's father was involved in a horrible accident that left him unable to use either of his arms. Overnight, he was unable to provide for his family of four and the family's INR 4,000 (USD $60) per month vanished and Mamta and her family were relegated to borrowing money for basic groceries.

She shared that borrowing money to cover costs was unsustainable, so the her family made the very difficult decision to leave their village in search of opportunity and found themselves taking shelter at Mamta's uncle's home in Jasola - a very poor slum community in Delhi.  While her uncle showed kindness in taking her family in, his view on gender equality and girls' education didn't portray the same kindness.

"From day one, my uncle decided that as a girl with a disabled father, I had no business attending school," Mamta shared.  He argued that the sooner she was able to get married, the sooner she would have a husband who could provide for her and would be one less mouth for her mother and father to feed.

For millions of girls like Mamta, the daily pressures of living in poverty, being forced to drop out of school and into a marriage before they turn 18 - is rooted in this logic.

Mamta shared that this is when she was introduced to Magic Bus and her mentor Mohit.  Mohit says, "Mamta continued on in school with Magic Bus helping her stand up to her uncle and graduated high school!  This is a testament to her fighting spirit."

Mamta had shared with her audience her next step in her Magic Bus journey:

"My Magic Bus mentors recognized the potential I had to break the future that was 'destined' for girls like me and I enrolled in the Youth Livelihood Center in Jasola.  Over the next 4 months, I developed the skills I needed to find and keep a job in the retail sector.  My Magic Bus mentors even accompanied me to the interview."

Mamta was overjoyed when she learned that her hard work and determination helped her land the job.  Over the last 5 months, she has been working as a salesperson at a leading home decor store located 8 km from her home.  

"I earn INR 11,000 every month and I have opened a government savings account and get one day off every week," she smiles.  "It feels so good to know that I am the provider for my family."

"The best thing about our training is that it gives Mamta a competitive advantage at work," says Mohit, who continues to provide Mamta with the information, advice, and guidance a first-generation office worker needs. "The fact that she was the only one in her cohort to be promoted within 5 months of starting her first job proves the value of the skills she has learned."