Financing of skill development and upskilling courses has remained a grey area for long as either it was either government funding to providers through various schemes or some selective courses and providers, who were able to get NBFCs to finance their courses. But all that is going to change now.
Avanse Financial Services (AFS), country’s top education-focused NBFC has partnered with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) to provide easy, fast, and affordable financing solutions to the youth, who want to equip them with skills. The AFS loans will be available to student trainees training with NSDC affiliated institutions across India. This arrangement is likely to benefit around 10 lakh youth in next five years.
On the commencement of this collaboration Amit Gainda, MD & CEO, Avanse Financial Services said, “We are delighted to partner with NSDC as it will give us an impeccable opportunity to strengthen our purpose of democratising education and education financing in India. This will enable us to contribute towards developing a ‘skilled India’, a nation with a future-ready young population geared up to reach the zenith of success. We believe this partnership will enable us to amplify our reach and thus, fulfil our mission of making education financing seamless, affordable and accessible for every deserving Indian student.”
Skill development is extremely crucial, as it can contribute to structural transformation and economic growth by enhancing employability and labour productivity. India is one of the youngest countries in the world, with more than 62% of the population in the working-age group and more than 54% of the total population below 25 years of age. This creates a large pool of human resources with high-untapped potential for development.
Ved Mani Tiwari, COO and Officiating CEO, NSDC stated, “Access to finance is critical for democratisation of education and skills. Partnerships with NBFCs like Avanse Financial Services help NSDC move one step closer towards its core purpose, ‘Skills4All, Anytime, Anywhere’, as it helps achieve financial inclusion of those sections of our society who otherwise can’t imagine acquiring skills for new age employment/entrepreneurship opportunities in India or overseas.”
