Mastercard Foundation pledges CAD 130 mln to boost youth social, economic impact

30 / 09 / 2026

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The Mastercard Foundation has committed CAD 130 million over the next decade to support more than 1,000 First Nations, Inuit, and Métis youth through a new leadership program designed to strengthen their social and economic impact in their communities and across sectors.

The Mastercard Foundation Fellows Program launched with the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies (SIIT) and Gabriel Dumont Institute (GDI) as its inaugural host partners. The two institutions will host the program’s first cohort of 25 Fellows.

Building indigenous youth leadership:

The program will provide Fellows with mentors in their fields, coaching, and up to CAD 50,000 to support their leadership journeys and advance their individual goals.

Fellows will determine their own pathways, with opportunities ranging from courses and workshops to land-based learning and experiences designed to deepen connections to culture, industry and leaders.

“Each Fellow will identify the learning and the leadership development they need, and we will resource it with mentorship, coaching, and funding directed toward the goals they set with their host institution,” said Sewit Ahderom, President and CEO of the Mastercard Foundation.

Scaling impact across Canada:

Insights from the inaugural cohort will inform a phased national expansion involving Indigenous-led host organizations across Canada over the next decade.

The program aims to build a growing network of Indigenous youth leaders equipped to advance lasting social and economic change within their communities and internationally, while strengthening Indigenous representation in influential spaces.

“The Mastercard Foundation Fellows Program will provide Indigenous young people with opportunities to deepen their connection to culture, strengthen their leadership capacity, and build relationships that will support them throughout their careers and their lives,” said CeCe Baptiste, Vice President of Finance at SIIT.

The Mastercard Foundation said Indigenous Peoples are the youngest and fastest-growing population in Canada, with Indigenous youth already playing leadership roles in their communities.