Microsoft Cloud services to empower non-profit organizations in India

As part of Microsoft's 'Public Cloud for Good' initiative, Microsoft India is making Microsoft Azure Cloud services broadly available to eligible non-profit organizations, bringing the power of technology to them. Qualifying non-profits can avail free Azure credits worth US $5000 for a year to unlock benefits such as insight, agility and operational efficiency.

Globally, Microsoft is donating US $1 billion in cloud computing resources between 2016 and 2018 to 70,000 non-profits and NGOs worldwide, including in India.

Microsoft India partnered with NASSCOM Foundation to organize "Azure for Good" workshop in Hyderabad today. Attended by 22 representatives from 12 local non-profits, the workshop highlighted how other organizations in the sector are using the cloud platform to drive greater impact among communities in the face of constant challenges of limited manpower and resources.

Some of the participating non-profits included Share India, Rural Development Foundation, Parents Association for the Mentally Handicapped Persons, LEPRA Society, Hyderabad Eye Institute, CHORD, CAP Foundation, Bhagavatula Charitable Trust, Ashray Akruti, Jaldhaara Foundation, Dr. Reddy's Foundation and Aide et Action.

"Microsoft has a long-standing commitment to contribute in new and more impactful ways to a societal ecosystem that connects the benefits of technology to those who need it most and work harder to drive inclusion," said Associate General Counsel Microsoft India, Madhu Khatri.

"NGOs across India are challenged by the lack of funds to setup the required ICT infrastructure for their portals, apps and other online solutions. This makes it difficult for them to scale up the good work and limits their own reach. We are glad to partner with Microsoft in offering the Azure services worth $5000 for a year free of cost to the eligible NGOs and are confident that this grant will more than suffice their cloud platform needs," said CEO NASSCOM Foundation, Shrikant Sinha.

New Delhi-based Digital Empowerment Foundation (DEF), one of the world's leading practitioners in the field of Information and Communication Technology, shared at the workshop, its story of migrating to the cloud to fulfill its mission of empowering people digitally especially those from the unreached and underserved communities of India.

By adopting Microsoft Azure the organization has been able to save time and trouble with technology tools, accomplish more, streamline tedious tasks, and save money on tech support. Similarly, Don Bosco YaR Forum, collaborated with App Point Software Solutions to create Child MISS (Management Information System and Services). It is a comprehensive Child Tracking System for effective data management, monitoring and reporting.

Hosting the solution on the Azure public cloud platform enabled agility which helped scaling up infrastructure and improve the NGO's responsiveness. It enables Child MISS to maintain a holistic database of all children and contributes to the speed, structure, knowledge and services for the care, protection, knowledge and development of at-risk youth. Microsoft Azure has helped Child MISS increase its impact by 200 percent.

Digital Empowerment Foundation and Don Bosco YaR Forum are compelling examples of how the Microsoft Cloud can empower nonprofits to achieve their missions with greater insights, capabilities and efficiency. The company's approach reflects the unmet need it sees in communities around the world and the confidence it has in the ability of non-profits to drive digital inclusion and empowerment programs around the world.