Citibanamex and Citi Foundation Invest US$4.5 Million (92 Million Pesos) Toward Job Training for Mexican Youth

Mexico City – Together, Citibanamex and the Citi Foundation have contributed more than US$4.5 million (92 million pesos) to job skills programs benefitting nearly 10,000 young people, the two organizations announced. The initiative is in addition to Citibanamex’s commitment to education and entrepreneurship training, as well as financial and labor inclusion for the country’s youth.

Through its Pathways to Progress program and in partnership with eight non-profit organizations, the Citi Foundation is investing US$2 million (40 million pesos) toward efforts to reduce unemployment among young people in Mexico. Citi employees are also being encouraged to volunteer as mentors to provide coaching and mentorship to program participants. The investment marks the first time the Citi Foundation is expanding its signature initiative to Mexico.

“Pathways to Progress is Citi’s and the Citi Foundation’s answer to the persistent problem of youth unemployment around the world. Mexico is the country where we have the largest presence outside of the United States, and it can’t be excluded from this important Citi initiative at the global level,” explained Jane Fraser, Citi Latam’s CEO.

The following organizations were selected by the Citi Foundation from a pool of 27 proposals:

• Laboratoria Coding México: empowers women from vulnerable segments of society by training them in digital technology, such as computer programming, and helping them develop interpersonal skills. Based in Mexico City and Zapopan.
• Global Fairness Initiative (GFI): provides job skills, personal finance, business and career planning for young people not in education, employment or training, in partnership with Kuepa University and local community organizations. Based in Mexico City, Acapulco, Cuernavaca, Guadalajara and Puebla.
• Sin Fronteras: provides comprehensive legal and social support to help migrant youth integrate and lead prosperous lives in their new communities. Based in Mexico City.
• Fundación Pro Universitaria: delivers skills training, primarily administrative and interpersonal, to help young people improve their job prospects and performance. Based in Guadalajara, León and Monterrey.
• Fundación del Empresario Yucateco A.C. (FEYAC): building communities through the creation of inclusive spaces and training in job and interpersonal skills for young people. Participants are encouraged to develop new products with the potential to reactivate the local market. Based in Flamboyanes, Yucatán.
• Vínculos y Redes: training in personal self-knowledge and technical skills for at-risk youth with no access to jobs or education. Empowers young people to exercise their right to education and dignified employment based on respect and equality. Based in Mexico City.
• International Youth Foundation: job and interpersonal skills training with psychological support for young people not in education, employment or training, in partnership with CONALEP. Based in Monterrey.
• Youthbuild México: job and soft skills training for at-risk youth and Jóvenes Construyendo el Futuro participants. Based in Mexico City, Tijuana and Ecatepec.

  In addition to these efforts, in 2018 and 2019 to date Citibanamex has invested more than 52 million pesos in the following initiatives: the Secretariat of Labor and Social Welfare’s Jóvenes Construyendo el Futuro program, which has trained more than 200 young people in Mexico City and Metepec; a variety of programs focusing on learning and employment, such as Jóvenes de Excelencia Citibanamex, Impulso Citibanamex, and Premio Atanasio G. Saravia; beneficiaries of UNAM’s Fernando Solana scholarship; and social innovation and entrepreneurship projects that directly support more than 6,300 young people.

  “We are one of the first companies to join Jóvenes Construyendo el Futuro. We have already supported training for more than 200 financial education capacitators, and these young people will be sent to communities around the country to teach families how to invest and manage their money,” Citibanamex’s CEO, Ernesto Torres Cantú, remarked. “Promoting a culture of financial education and contributing to national development are priorities for us at Citibanamex.”

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  Citibanamex
  Grupo Financiero Banamex, S.A. de C.V. (Grupo Financiero Citibanamex) is the leading financial group in Mexico. Following a universal banking strategy, the Group offers a variety of financial services to companies and individuals, including commercial banking and investment, insurance, and investment management. Its subsidiaries include Banco Nacional de México, S.A., founded in 1884, which has an extensive network of distribution of 1,477 branches, 8,960 ATMs and more than 23,087 offices located throughout the country.

  Citi Foundation
  The Citi Foundation works to promote economic progress and improve the lives of people in low-income communities around the world. We invest in efforts that increase financial inclusion, catalyze job opportunities for youth, and reimagine approaches to building economically vibrant cities. The Citi Foundation's "More than Philanthropy" approach leverages the enormous expertise of Citi and its people to fulfill our mission and drive thought leadership and innovation.