Setting young people to flight

This week, the MasterCard Foundation in partnership with Equity Group Foundation celebrated the 2012 intake of the Wings to Fly Scholars, the largest secondary school scholarship programme in Kenya. ALLAN OLINGO spoke to Reeta Roy, the foundation’s president

She is simple, radiant and extremely approachable.

"I was born of an Indian father and a Chinese mother and grew up in Malaysia. My father passed away while I was young and I struggled. I saw my mum take a loan against our house so that she could educate me," she starts the interview while ensuring that we are served coffee.

Reeta says that together with her brother, they went through university education through scholarships. She speaks fondly of her childhood struggles.

"The people who helped me saw the passion within me to succeed and helped me grow into what I am. It’s the reason I enjoy helping others achieve their dreams. My greatest passion is giving people the same chance I was given," Reeta says with a smile.

Reeta Roy, MasterCard Foundation president [Photo/Standard]

She went to St Andrews Presbyterian College in the US, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. Reeta then received a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, both in the US.

Reeta then worked for the United Nations before joining the private sector, where she worked at Bristol-Myers Squibb for eleven years.

In 2008, she joined The MasterCard Foundation. Prior to joining the MasterCard foundation, she was the Divisional Vice President of Global Citizenship and Policy at Abbott, a broad-based global health care company, and Vice President of the Abbott Fund — its corporate foundation.

It is at MasterCard Foundation that she has exploited the opportunity to fulfil her dream of making a difference in people’s lives through the projects that she spearheads.

"We are determined to create opportunities for all, especially the less privileged through empowering them with education and also micro finance. Through education, we assist in the post primary education because we understand that it is the pathway to higher education," she offers.

Under the micro finance element, the MasterCard Foundation is trying to empower the people financially so that they can have self-sustaining projects, which help them with financial stability. It involves educating the people on capacity and knowledge of how to use money.

Future pay-off

Says Reeta: "When you have access to education and finance, then the young people will be part of the success story, so if we invest in their education, we will be able to tap into their desire to give back." She adds, "I have been to Kenya more than 20 times and every time I am here I get a whole new experience of this country, especially while working with the less privileged. We want to be part of the success story in Kenya."

In 2009, MasterCard Foundation funded the first 300 students through their post primary scholarships and this has rapidly grown into a 67 million dollar project that is currently funding 7,300 students in the country.

Says Reeta: "We are proud that we took time to listen and we are now able to pay the fees, and cater for shopping, pocket money and the basic need of these students."

"When a needy person at a tender age has overcome challenges to excel, then the best we can do is to acknowledge," she proudly offers. "When I sit down with these kids, you can see determination in their eyes. They talk about how the opportunities that we offer them will change their lives."

"So what makes these projects you are undertaking so special?" I ask Reeta.

"I am looking at the future and I understand that the investment that MasterCard Foundation does will pay off in future," she offers.

Apart from the Equity scholarships, Reeta through MasterCard is engaged in an eleven million dollar project that entails improving the financial capabilities of young people and women through micro financing.

"We have currently empowered around 220,000 people and we have a target of 660,000. In this project the recipients learn about the basic fundamentals on savings, budgeting and managing money. The success of the project is what the recipient do with the knowledge and I am happy with what I have seen," she says.

The greatest inspiration, Reeta says is when she gets mentored back by the people who have benefited from the MasterCard Foundation.

So how does she balance her job that entail constant travelling and family?

"It is fortunate that I have an adorable husband who understand the nature of my work. Ours is a partnership and we are able to create space so that can fulfil our individual dreams," Reeta offers.

She adds: " I really love my job but most importantly I always create space to enjoy the companionship of my husband and family. The love and care of my family is my strength and pillar, as this job is really demanding"

When not working, Reeta enjoys the company of friends just like any other woman.

"I enjoy holding conversations, reading books, travelling and sharing stories about my encounters with my friends," she says.

I ask her about her most memorable encounter at work.

She says: "I was in Thailand visiting one of the micro finance projects when I met this disabled woman who we had bought a cow to help her start," she says "She was optimistic about the cow and her self-esteem was high she asked me to pray for her cow. I was moved."