GOAL (Going Online as Leaders) is a joint initiative of Ministry of Tribal Affairs and Meta (formerly Facebook), which aims at digital empowerment of tribal youth and women through concept of mentor and mentee.

The first phase of the GOAL programme was launched as a pilot project in May 2020 and it was completed by Dec 2021. The mentees in the first-phase were provided with 40+ hours of training across three course pillars: (1) Communication & Life Skills; (2) Enabling Digital Presence, and (3) Leadership & Entrepreneurship. The programme is fully funded by Meta (Facebook India). As part of the phase 1 of GOAL program, 176 tribal youth from 23 States across India were selected through an online application process.  The mentees were also given a smart phone and Internet Connectivity by Facebook.

The second phase of the GOAL Programme (GOAL 2.0) was launched on 28^thJune, 2022 with an aim to digitally upskill tribal youth by promoting entrepreneurship and opening up opportunities for them using digital technology.

In Phase-I, the digital mentorship was provided online by attaching one mentor to 2 mentees.  Based on learnings from Phase-I, there is change in the design in Phase-II.  Rather than inviting applications to become mentees under the scheme, Goal 2 program will be open to all people from tribal communities. The program aims to upskill and digitally enable tribal youth via Facebook live sessions and Meta Business Coach, a digital learning tool. There will be special focus on more than 10 lakh members of 50000 Vandhan Self Help Groups.  They will be digitally trained with regard to market demand, packaging, branding and marketing of their products.  The GOAL 2 will enable maximum participation and percolation of benefits of the training within the tribal youth with provision of Chatbot, need based on line sessions from Industry experts in different fields as per requirements from the mentees.

The programme is fully funded by Meta (Facebook India) and Ministry of Tribal Affairs has not incurred any expenditure or provided any funds for implementation of the program.

Ministry of Tribal Affairs in coordination with Ministry of IT and Electronics, will be providing 6 digital classes in each of the 175 EMRS schools selected under the program.  The project is being implemented by ERNET, which is an autonomous organization under MeiTY through STC funds available with MeITY and 10% funding is being done by NESTS.  

Under Skill India Mission, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) is implementing its flagship scheme Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY). Under PMKVY 3.0, focus has also been given for skilling on digital technology and Industry 4.0. Sector Skill Councils (SSCs) have also created job roles on new and emerging digital technologies and industry 4.0 skills like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT).  MSDE has budget of Rs. 203 cr under Schedule Tribe Component (STC) for various programs related to skill development of tribals during 2022-23.  

Further, National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) under the aegis of the MSDE has initiated online skilling through eSkill India portal. The platform offers learning opportunities on emerging technologies like cybersecurity, blockchain, artificial intelligence and machine learning, predictive modelling, statistical business analytics, cloud and Internet of Things along with professional skills like design thinking, project management and digital marketing.

There is no separate fund allotment for training of Digital Skills under the PMKVY scheme. Under Centrally Sponsored State Managed (CSSM) component of PMKVY scheme, there is a provision of State/UT-wise allocation of funds.

Further, Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education is implementing the initiative of Vocationalisation of School Education under the umbrella of the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of ‘Samagra Shiksha’. Under Vocational Education component of ‘Samagra Shiksha’, NSQF compliant vocational courses are offered to the school students including tribal Students from class 9th to 12th in the schools covered under the scheme. It consists of Communication Skills, Self-Management Skills, Information and Communication Technology Skills, Entrepreneurship Skills and Green Skills.

This Information was provided by Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Shri Arjun Munda in Lok Sabha.

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NB/SK

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