British Council and Mumbai First Join Hands to transform Mumbai into a World-Class City

• Projects and activities will be initiated for an all-round achievement in the two key areas- education and culture
• In education, initiatives will be taken up aimed at enrichment of teaching skills and quality improvement of low-cost private English medium schools
• On the culture front, initiatives will focus on taking the diverse range of music of Mumbai to a global audience through Mix The City Mumbai Project

Mumbai, July 10, 2017: The British Council and Mumbai First will collaborate in education, tourism, arts, and culture to transform Mumbai into a world-class city, an official said here on Monday.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed to initiate projects and activities in these sectors for an all-around achievement in the two key areas — education and culture — that would positively impact Mumbaikars.

In education, initiatives will be taken up aimed at enrichment of teaching skills and quality improvement of low-cost private English medium schools in and around Mumbai besides professional development and language proficiency programmes.

These programs will be conducted face to face and digitally with government (municipal) primary and secondary schools involving around 10,000 teachers across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region.

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The new schools would focus on developing the school leadership, 21st-century core skills of learners and quality in classrooms with plans to set up joint awards for those (schools) that meet the set quality standards.

On the culture front, initiatives will focus on taking the diverse range of music of Mumbai to a global audience through Mix The City Mumbai Project, featuring recordings of performances by local musicians curated online.

The collaboration will seek art installations in public places across Mumbai, creating multiple sites to involve people to become part of the city's rich musical heritage.

Besides, there will be musical exchanges between the UK and Indian artists, organizations and public through collaborative projects designed to nurture talent and promote wider cultural dialogues.

"For almost 70 years, we have helped put education and culture at the heart of the UK's relationship with Mumbai. We are delighted that in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'UK-India Year of Culture', we can deepen our connections with the city through a new partnership with Mumbai First," said British Council's Director-India Alan Gemmell.

"The collaboration is in line with our vision to transform Mumbai and MMR into a world-class safe city, one of the best places to live and do business," said Shishir Joshi, CEO, Mumbai First think tank.

It was set up as a model of public-private-participation by India's corporate leaders almost two decades ago with the Tatas, Mahindras, Godrejs, and others being the original patrons. (IANS)