Ajim Premji Philanthropic Initiative launched to fund non-profit organisations

Wipro chairman Azim Premji on 23 November 2014 launched a new initiative Ajim Premji Philanthropic Initiative to fund non-profit organizations.

The focus of the initiative is to award grants to non-profits organizations which are working in socially important areas like nutrition, disabilities, support for the marginalized, and governance.

This initiative is distinct from Azim Premji Foundation which will continue to focus on education.

The Foundation works across seven states in the country that has 350000 schools. The foundation aims to improve the quality and equity in government school education.

Azim Premji has also established the Azim Premji University in Bengaluru to develop talent and research for the education and broader social sector. It currently has about 1200 people.

With a net worth of 16.4 billion US dollar, Premji is India's biggest philanthropist. Since 2010, he has transferred more than 4 billion US dollar to a trust that controls the Foundation. It's not clear how much of this will be earmarked for the new initiative, or whether a fresh allocation will be made.

Azim Premji is the first Indian to sign up for the Giving Pledge initiative started by Microsoft founder Bill Gates and billionaire investor Warren Buffett. The pledge obliges the person to donate a majority of wealth to philanthropy. Three Indian-Americans — Vinod Khosla, Manoj Bhargava and Romesh Wadhwani — are also among the signatories.