Founded in Indonesia in 1999, YCAB Foundation was built on a simple but powerful premise: poverty cannot be solved by education alone, nor by economic access alone — both must advance together.
Our integrated model empowers mothers to increase their daily income from approximately US$2 to US$6 per capita through access to mission-driven microfinance, while equipping their children with education and job skills to raise household income from US$6 to US$8 per capita. This dual-generation approach creates upward mobility that is both measurable and sustainable.
Over the past 25 years, YCAB has impacted more than five million underprivileged youth and over 250,000 women-owned MSMEs across Indonesia.
INTEGRATED FINANCIAL INCLUSION
We believe education can only thrive when families are economically secure. Through our social enterprise arm, YCAB Ventures, ultra-micro entrepreneurial mothers gain access to responsible microfinance alongside structured financial literacy and business development training.
In addition, YCAB provides inclusive digital learning tools — including chatbot and LMS platforms accessible to individuals with sensory disabilities — ensuring women entrepreneurs have practical knowledge to strengthen and grow their businesses.
ENABLING EDUCATION
As economic stability is established, YCAB advances a holistic family intervention approach — recognizing that sustainable poverty alleviation must uplift both parent and child simultaneously. When mothers gain access to capital and grow their businesses, we ensure their children are not left behind.
To date, we have awarded over 200 scholarships specifically for the children of women empowered through our microfinance program. These scholarships extend access to high school, university, vocational institutions, and digital skills training. By directly linking a mother’s economic progress to her child’s educational opportunity, YCAB reinforces upward mobility at the household level — strengthening not only individual outcomes, but the long-term resilience of the entire family.
Since 2003, YCAB has established 87 learning centers nationwide. While our early work focused on providing basic education for high school dropouts, policy shifts such as free public schooling significantly reduced dropout rates. The COVID-19 pandemic further accelerated our strategic transition from informal education centers to a scholarship-based and future-skills approach.
Additionally, today, we operate seven active centers — four batik training hubs and three digital and English literacy centers — focused on preparing youth for meaningful employment and entrepreneurship.
BUILDING A SELF-RELIANT GENERATION
Education is only the starting point. YCAB equips youth with career coaching, work readiness training, digital acceleration, entrepreneurial mentorship, and climate-conscious STEM education. From batikpreneurs who create jobs in their communities to digitally skilled graduates entering the workforce, our programs are designed to foster long-term self-reliance.
To complete the final link in our change model, YCAB has introduced capital market–based impact instruments, including the Juara Empowerment Balanced Fund (JEBF) and PNM Cinta Anak Bangsa.
These mutual fund products enable graduates who become entrepreneurs or employed professionals to “pay it forward.” By investing in capital market products that allocate a portion of funds to YCAB’s programs, beneficiaries and investors help grow and scale our mission-driven microfinance. This creates a sustainable system where success fuels opportunity for the next generation.
EXPANDING THROUGH GRANTMAKING
As part of our long-term sustainability strategy, YCAB has also expanded into grantmaking — supporting like-minded grassroots organizations aligned with our mission. By mobilizing capital and redistributing it strategically, we amplify impact beyond our direct programs and strengthen the broader ecosystem of locally driven solutions.
As we reflect on 25 years of impact, one truth stands out: real change happens when we walk together.
Looking ahead, YCAB aims to deepen partnerships, strengthen capital-market–driven social financing, and expand its role as a grantmaker — building a legacy that transcends generations and positions YCAB as a global model for sustainable, locally driven social change.
