Citi Foundation Announces 2025 Global Innovation Challenge for Nonprofits Accelerating Youth Employability
50 community organizations to receive a collective $25 million in catalytic funding, building on over a decade of Citi Foundation investment in youth.
NEW YORK – The Citi Foundation today issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for its 2025 Global Innovation Challenge, which provides philanthropic support for community organizations to pilot or scale solutions to social and economic issues around the world.
Despite recent progress, young people globally continue to experience challenges in their pursuit of employment, including the skills mismatch and gaining access to quality jobs. According to the International Labour Organization, 65 million young people globally are unemployed. With this RFP, 50 community organizations will receive $500,000 each in grant support for innovative employment solutions for low-income youth, from upskilling and reskilling efforts to entrepreneurship programming, financial education and more.
The 2025 Global Innovation Challenge builds on Citi and the Citi Foundation’s long-standing investment in youth, including:
- The Citi Foundation invested more than $300 million over the last decade alone in programs that supported over one million young people in expanding their skills, experience and networks through its Pathways to Progress initiative.
- Citi provides banking services for clients expanding access to high-quality education and youth entrepreneurship opportunities and invests in solutions for early career professionals. Citi has also financed and facilitated access to education in emerging markets through social finance bonds and other transactions.
- Citi employees volunteer year-round, lending their talent and expertise in support of youth employability, including engaging in financial education and career development workshops and mentoring and coaching youth.
“From skills training to job placement programming and more, Citi and the Citi Foundation have long invested in scalable solutions to accelerate youth employability. But it remains a persistent and urgent matter, and we know there is more work to be done,” said Ed Skyler, Citi Head of Enterprise Services & Public Affairs and Chair of the Citi Foundation. “Applying the Global Innovation Challenge model to this issue represents the next step in our funding journey and our continued investment in the young people poised to build thriving and resilient communities.”
The deadline for eligible organizations to register to apply is Tuesday, March 4, 2025 at 12:00 p.m. New York Time (Eastern Time) and recipients will be announced later this year. For more information on this opportunity including eligibility requirements and target geographies, please visit www.citifoundation.com/rfp.
About Citi
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About Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions
Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS) enables our clients' success by providing an integrated suite of innovative and tailored cash management and trade finance services to multinational corporations, financial institutions and public sector organizations across the globe. Based on the foundation of the industry's largest proprietary network with banking licenses in over 100 countries and globally integrated technology platforms, TTS continues to lead the way in offering the industry's most comprehensive range of digitally enabled treasury, trade and liquidity management solutions.
Media Contact:
Citi: Alexandra Oniceanu-Becuț | Head of Corporate Communication | Citi Romania, Tel: +40212036768 Email: alexandra.oniceanu@citi.com