Women and Girls in Sports

Play, Empower, Prosper, Repeat.

Reliance Foundation's commitment to sports is driven by its belief that sports serve as a powerful catalyst to empower women to break barriers, build leadership skills, and drive positive change, especially among children from vulnerable communities.

Reliance Foundation Youth Sports

A country-wide multi sporting platform that has seen participation from over 10,000 educational institutes and 1,30,000 young athletes since inception. The best athletes receive scholarships and an opportunity to be scouted by professional football clubs and the Indian national team.

Nearly 20,000 of the total number of participating athletes in 2019-20 were girls and 83 of these girls have been awarded scholarships. RFYS has also partnered with the All India Football Federation to scout the best performing girl athletes from our competitions for the Indian national team.

Elevating India's Olympic Aspirations

This initiative began in 2019 with an aim to improve the country’s performance at Olympics and other prestigious international events. Reliance Foundation is supporting elite athletes that have potential under its Athlete Scholarship programme and works closely with coaches, the government and sports federations to support these athletes to enhance performance and enable them to win medals for India at the International stage. Out of the current 14 scholarships offered, eight are offered to girl athletes - Ridhi Phor (Archery), Aditi Bhatt, Unnati Hooda, Palak Arora (Badminton), Tilottama Sen (Shooting), Manika Batra (Table Tennis) and Sneha Soren, Jhilli Dalabehera (Weightlifting).

A Game-Changing Partnership with AFI

In 2022, Reliance announced a long-term partnership with Athletics Federation of India (AFI) to enable the holistic growth of Athletics in India. The partnership aims to discover, nurture and develop Indian athletes from across the country and provide them with world-class facilities, coaching and sports science and medicine support by leveraging the Reliance Foundation ecosystem including the Odisha Reliance Foundation Athletics High-Performance Centre and Sir H. N. Reliance Foundation Hospital.

The partnership will have a special focus on girl athletes and aim to bridge the gender divide and enable them to achieve their dreams. Reliance Foundation also runs the RF Junior NBA Programme, which is a school-based youth basketball programme that has reached out to more than 11 million youngsters of which more than 45% of the registrations are girls. Some of the athletes identified and supported by Reliance Foundation are already on their journeys to becoming world-class performers.

Empowering Tomorrow's Basketball Stars

Reliance Foundation's RF Junior NBA Programme, a school-based youth basketball initiative, has reached out to more than 11 million youngsters, with over 45% of registrations coming from girls. This programme aims to groom the basketball stars of tomorrow, providing them with valuable skills and opportunities.

Through these initiatives, Reliance Foundation is not only promoting sports but also nurturing the potential of young athletes, especially girls, to excel in their chosen fields and contribute to the nation's sporting success.

Girls’ Education

Opening doors to the future of possibilities

Reliance Foundation Scholarships:

Dhirubhai Ambani Scholarships: Established in 1996, this programme serves as a cornerstone for this mission. Its primary objective is to ensure inclusive and equitable education for meritorious students, offering vital financial support that enables them to pursue higher education without disruption. By doing so, the scholarship programme unlocks the untapped potential of India's youth, nurturing them into future leaders in their respective fields. To date, the DAS has benefitted 12,776 students, with approximately 50% being girls.

Undergraduate and Postgraduate Scholarships: In 2020, Reliance Foundation initiated the 'Reliance Foundation Scholarships,' which cater to the academic aspirations of students across diverse streams. Commencing in 2020, Reliance Foundation initiated the 'Reliance Foundation Scholarships,' which cater to the academic aspirations of students across diverse streams. Since 2020 onwards, these scholarships have been awarded to more than 5,000 students, with a significant representation of 49% being young women.

Education and Sports for All initiative:

In alignment with the broader vision of the 'Education and Sports for All' initiative, Reliance Foundation actively advocates for the convergence of sporting talent and education.

This initiative provides a platform for young girls to excel in sports, emphasising the importance of holistic development. In the year 2020-2021, Reliance Foundation extended its support to four notable NGOs—Milaan, Sakhi for Girls, Slum Soccer, and Yuwa—each dedicated to enhancing educational and sporting opportunities for girls.

Women’s Health

Creating stronger, thriving communities

Reliance Foundation's commitment to women's health is demonstrated through a comprehensive approach that encompasses accessible healthcare services, nutritional support, and preventative initiatives.

It works to increase women’s access to nutrition and health services, preventing anaemia and malnutrition and improving prenatal and postpartum care. Reliance Foundation collaborated with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, MSD for Mothers, Tata Trusts and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on Project ASMAN (Alliance for Saving Mothers and New-borns), a unique initiative to reduce maternal and neonatal mortality across Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. The project deployed innovative tech-enabled, facility-based interventions that helped healthcare service providers provide high-quality care during childbirth and in the critical 48-60 hours just after delivery.

It played a major role in helping healthcare professionals monitor cases and equipped them to handle complications better. Over 7.5 lakhs mothers and newborns were reached through 81 government health facilities since the inception of the programme in 2015. During April 2018 to June 2021, 433,100 cases were registered and 165,000 (38%) high-risk cases were detected through the ASMAN app.

Her Circle

Building a safe and supportive community for women

Founded by the Founder Chairperson Mrs. Nita M. Ambani, Her Circle is an inclusive, collaborative, diverse, interactive, socially-conscious digital movement for the women of India. This fast-growing digital platform achieved a remarkable milestone in 2022-23 by reaching over 310 million users. In its second year of operation, the platform has been dedicated to establishing a network of women to foster meaningful collaborations and connections. Through social experiments, expert interactions, and inspiring women's stories, Her Circle continues to provide a vital space for dialogues on issues impacting women profoundly.

With an impressive outreach to over 310 million users and a registration count exceeding 2,25,000 entrepreneurs, the program has made significant inroads in the digital landscape. In 2022, Her Circle expanded its reach by launching Her Circle Hindi on its one-year anniversary, extending its support to a wider audience.

Breaking gender stereotypes and shattering barriers, Her Circle initiated diverse and innovative initiatives across various domains, including environment, health, science, entrepreneurship, and more. Her Circle extended its reach by launching Her Circle Hindi, making its valuable content accessible to a broader audience.

It also launched innovative initiatives spanning various fields, challenging societal norms, through various campaigns like promoting body positivity through the EveryBODY Project, and raising awareness about the water crisis through socio-documentaries, sustainability special cover shoot for World Environment day, breaking taboos around menstruation through initiatives like #periodallies and much more.

Digital Empowerment for women

Connecting Women, Transforming Communities

Women's inclusion in digital technology is a crucial catalyst for education, financial inclusion, entrepreneurship, civic engagement, and information access. The WomenConnect Challenge India was launched in 2020 with an aim to address the gender digital divide. This initiative identified and supported innovative solutions to empower women in India, facilitating their access to and use of digital technology to drive positive health, education and livelihood outcomes for themselves and their families.

Through Round 1, Reliance Foundation provided Rs. 8.5 crore ($1.1 million USD) in grants for 10 not-for-profit organisations between Rs. 75 Lakh to 1 crore ($100,000 - $135,000) each. Projects kicked off in July 2021 and focused on building entrepreneurship skills, relevant digital literacy for low-literate users, edutainment-based courseware, mentoring and value-chain linkages and support for women working in agriculture. These projects have reached and created a sustainable impact in the lives of over 320,000 women and girls directly and indirectly, spread over 19 states of India.

Building on the momentum from Round 1, Round 2 was launched in October 2022 to continue to discover innovative ways to bring women online with the support of their families and communities, and create sustainable long-term programming that helps bridge the gender digital divide.

The second round of the Indian chapter of WCC has now concluded, and an impact assessment study conducted by Population Council Consulting in 2025 surveyed 1,985 individuals from seven awardee organisations to evaluate the effectiveness of a digital literacy programme targeting women. The findings reveal significant progress: 97% of women had access to phones, with 75% using smartphones, enabling the program to shift focus from mere access to skill-building. 

Training efforts have successfully enhanced digital confidence, as 83% reported improved knowledge of phone functions, and women who owned phones demonstrated stronger digital skills, underscoring the importance of ownership for consistent learning. Over 80% increased their use of phones, social media, and digital payments, with 60% applying these skills to business activities, all reporting greater use of digital payments. Awareness of online risks was high, with 92% recognizing potential dangers and 75% understanding digital fraud, highlighting the effectiveness of safety education. Financial inclusion advanced as 98% had bank accounts and 64% used UPI for transactions. Empowerment extended beyond technology: 87% experienced greater freedom of movement, 80% felt more confident, and 77% took part in household decision-making, indicating a shift in traditional gender roles.

e-SafeHER Cyber Security Awareness Training

In April 2026, Reliance Foundation and C-DAC, Hyderabad, a scientific society under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India (GoI), announced the launch of e-SafeHER, a Cyber Security Awareness Training programme to enable one million women across rural India, to safely and confidently participate in the digital ecosystem.

This initiative is anchored under MeitY’s Information Security Education and Awareness (ISEA) programme through C-DAC Hyderabad, enabling content and training material for dissemination. Reliance Foundation will catalyse dissemination in rural communities across India, working in particular through women’s Self-Help Groups (SHGs).

e-SafeHer is another step forward in Reliance Foundation’s work to strengthen digital inclusion for women. It aims to strengthen last mile cybersecurity awareness – particularly among women in rural India, who are increasingly engaging with digital platforms for financial transactions, livelihoods, and access to essential services.

Women Leadership

WomenLeaders India Fellowship: Cultivating change agents

The WomenLeaders India Fellowship, powered by Reliance Foundation with technical inputs from Vital Voices, is a leadership development programme focused on advancing women’s leadership in India. Launched in 2022, the fellowship has, to date, supported two cohorts, empowering a total of 100 women leaders from across the social sector.

Across its first two rounds, the 10-month fellowship engaged 50 fellows per cohort working in areas including Rural Transformation, Education, Sports for Development, and Arts, Culture, and Heritage. This investment in women changemakers has translated into tangible leadership outcomes — 84% of fellows from Round 1 and 91% from Round 2 reported maintaining or significantly strengthening their confidence as women leaders, enabling them to lead with greater clarity and purpose within their organisations and communities. 

Structured around three tracks — Economic Empowerment & Entrepreneurs, Social Sector Leaders, and Changemakers — the fellowship focuses on leadership capacity building and skills development through mentoring, peer learning, and increased visibility. The strength of this approach is reflected in the scale of impact generated by fellows’ work: Round 1 fellows collectively reached 1,147,922 individuals, while Round 2 fellows extended their reach to 2,929,559 new individuals in the past year, significantly amplifying the programme’s ripple effect.