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Person

Reeta Roy

Born:

1964
Occupation:

President & CEO, Mastercard Foundation

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Reeta Roy is the president and CEO of the Mastercard Foundation, one of the largest foundations in the world with assets of over $40 billion. Under Roy’s leadership, the Mastercard Foundation has focused on diversity, inclusion, and youth economic empowerment in Africa. 1 2

Upbringing and Education

Reeta Roy was born in Malaysia in the early 1950s from a Hindu Indian father and a Buddhist Chinese mother. Roy attended Catholic school and credits her focus on diversity to her upbringing in a multicultural setting. 3

At nine-years-old, Roy first heard about the United Nations, which she has said that she conceived of as a “multicultural wonderland.” 4

She received a bachelor’s degree from St. Andrews Presbyterian College as well as a master’s degree in law and diplomacy from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. 5

Career

United Nations

Reeta Roy worked for two years at the United Nations focused on economic development, women’s rights, and human rights. 6 7

Bristol-Myers Squibb

Roy worked for 11 years at Bristol-Myers Squibb from 1991 to 2002 on global health policy. 8 9

Abbott Laboratories

Roy spent six years at Abbott Laboratories 10 as the divisional vice president of global citizenship and policy as well as the vice president of the Abbott Fund, the corporate foundation of Abbott Laboratories. At Abbott, Roy focused on HIV/AIDS in Africa and other global health programs. 11

Mastercard Foundation

In 2008, Roy was appointed the President of the Mastercard Foundation based in Toronto, Canada. 12 The Mastercard Foundation was founded in 2006 with funding provided after the company Mastercard made its initial public offering (IPO). Mastercard endowed the independent foundation with $500 million in shares and directed the nonprofit to focus on financial inclusion and education. 13 Mastercard Foundation is one of the largest foundations in the world with approximately $40 billion in assets. The foundation describes Roy as a leader “deeply committed to equity and inclusion.” 14

In 2009, Roy refocused the foundation’s attention to Africa. Since that time, the foundation “committed to a goal of ensuring 75% of its partners are African organizations and based the majority of the ‘Foundation’s operations, staff, and leadership, including Reeta herself, in Africa.’” 15 As of November 2022, Roy lived in Kigali, Rwanda. 16

Since 2009, The MasterCard Foundation has either committed or deployed more than $5.7 billion to “financial inclusion, education, and youth livelihood programs.” This funding included $1.3 billion to the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program to support 40,000 disadvantaged young people to complete secondary and/or higher education as well as $1.3 billion to the Saving Lives and Livelihoods initiative conducted in partnership with the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention to increase vaccination rates in Africa.  17

In 2018, Roy launched the Young Africa Works Program at the Mastercard Foundation focused on helping 30 million young Africans, especially young women, find “dignified and fulfilling work” by 2030. 18 19 Young Africa Works is a ten-year strategy focused on improving African youth-led entrepreneurship and innovation. Women are supposed to be 70% of the beneficiaries of this program. 20

Board Membership and Appearances

Roy sits on the board of the Global Health Council, a nonprofit networking organization that connects environmentalist groups to each other. 21 Reeta is also a member of the African Center for Economic Transformation’s African Transformation Leadership Panel, 22 an organization comprised of leaders from around the world who advocate on climate, population, and innovation in regards to Africa. 23

In 2023, Roy was named one of the top 50 most powerful women in philanthropy by Inside Philanthropy. 24 She regularly appears before the United Nations and regional African organizations and has presented before the World Bank Group meetings on youth employment. 25

References

  1. Rai, Mandeep. “Reeta Rot: Effective Philanthropy Begins with Humility And Respect.” Forbes. November 14, 2022. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mandeeprai/2022/11/14/reeta-roy-effective-philanthropy-begins-with-humility-and-respect/?sh=17e273234dda.
  2. Pitts, Gordon. “Reeta Roy: Changing lives by providing a hand up, not a hand out.” The Glob and Mail. November 24, 2008. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/reeta-roy-changing-lives-by-providing-a-hand-up-not-a-handout/article25581979/.
  3. Rai, Mandeep. “Reeta Rot: Effective Philanthropy Begins with Humility And Respect.” Forbes. November 14, 2022. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mandeeprai/2022/11/14/reeta-roy-effective-philanthropy-begins-with-humility-and-respect/?sh=17e273234dda.
  4. Rai, Mandeep. “Reeta Rot: Effective Philanthropy Begins with Humility And Respect.” Forbes. November 14, 2022. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mandeeprai/2022/11/14/reeta-roy-effective-philanthropy-begins-with-humility-and-respect/?sh=17e273234dda.
  5. “Reeta Roy.” The Mastercard Foundation. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://mastercardfdn.org/people/reeta-roy/
  6. Rai, Mandeep. “Reeta Rot: Effective Philanthropy Begins with Humility And Respect.” Forbes. November 14, 2022. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mandeeprai/2022/11/14/reeta-roy-effective-philanthropy-begins-with-humility-and-respect/?sh=17e273234dda.
  7. Pitts, Gordon. “Reeta Roy: Changing lives by providing a hand up, not a hand out.” The Glob and Mail. November 24, 2008. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/reeta-roy-changing-lives-by-providing-a-hand-up-not-a-handout/article25581979/.
  8. Rai, Mandeep. “Reeta Rot: Effective Philanthropy Begins with Humility And Respect.” Forbes. November 14, 2022. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mandeeprai/2022/11/14/reeta-roy-effective-philanthropy-begins-with-humility-and-respect/?sh=17e273234dda.
  9. “Reeta Roy.” Wise-Qatar. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.wise-qatar.org/biography/reeta-roy/.
  10. Rai, Mandeep. “Reeta Rot: Effective Philanthropy Begins with Humility And Respect.” Forbes. November 14, 2022. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mandeeprai/2022/11/14/reeta-roy-effective-philanthropy-begins-with-humility-and-respect/?sh=17e273234dda.
  11. “Reeta Roy.” Concordia. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.concordia.net/community/reeta-roy/.
  12. Pitts, Gordon. “Reeta Roy: Changing lives by providing a hand up, not a hand out.” The Glob and Mail. November 24, 2008. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/reeta-roy-changing-lives-by-providing-a-hand-up-not-a-handout/article25581979/.
  13. Rai, Mandeep. “Reeta Rot: Effective Philanthropy Begins with Humility And Respect.” Forbes. November 14, 2022. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mandeeprai/2022/11/14/reeta-roy-effective-philanthropy-begins-with-humility-and-respect/?sh=17e273234dda.
  14. “Reeta Roy.” Mastercard Foundation. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://mastercardfdn.org/people/reeta-roy/.
  15. “Reeta Roy.” Mastercard Foundation. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://mastercardfdn.org/people/reeta-roy/.
  16. Rai, Mandeep. “Reeta Rot: Effective Philanthropy Begins with Humility And Respect.” Forbes. November 14, 2022. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mandeeprai/2022/11/14/reeta-roy-effective-philanthropy-begins-with-humility-and-respect/?sh=17e273234dda.
  17. “Reeta Roy.” Mastercard Foundation. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://mastercardfdn.org/people/reeta-roy/.
  18. IP Staff. “Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Philanthropy.” Inside Philanthropy. December 5, 2023. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2023/12/5/the-50-most-powerful-women-in-us-philanthropy.
  19. “Reeta Roy.” Mastercard Foundation. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://mastercardfdn.org/people/reeta-roy/.
  20. Rai, Mandeep. “Reeta Rot: Effective Philanthropy Begins with Humility And Respect.” Forbes. November 14, 2022. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/mandeeprai/2022/11/14/reeta-roy-effective-philanthropy-begins-with-humility-and-respect/?sh=17e273234dda.
  21. [1] “Reeta Roy.” Wise-Qatar. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.wise-qatar.org/biography/reeta-roy/.
  22. “Reeta Roy.” Mastercard Foundation. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://mastercardfdn.org/people/reeta-roy/.
  23. “African Center for Economic Transformation.” Aidstream. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://aidstream.org/who-is-using/US-EIN-11-3803281/27604.
  24. IP Staff. “Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Philanthropy.” Inside Philanthropy. December 5, 2023. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2023/12/5/the-50-most-powerful-women-in-us-philanthropy.
  25. “Reeta Roy.” Concordia. Accessed February 8, 2024. https://www.concordia.net/community/reeta-roy/.
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