UNICEF and CII hold conference on investing in children's development

Speakers highlight the critical role of children in sustained economic growth and the potential for private sector engagement through corporate social responsibility

Published: July 16, 2026 09:00 pm IST – Chennai

By: The Hindu Bureau

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), held a roundtable conference in Chennai on Thursday (July 16, 2026) to discuss the role of the private sector in advancing child well-being and development. The event was themed “Why Invest in Children?”

As Tamil Nadu advances toward its vision of becoming a trillion-dollar economy, experts at the discussion emphasised that investing in children is increasingly recognised as one of the most strategic investments in the State’s future human capital, economic competitiveness, and inclusive growth.

“No sustained growth can be achieved without children,” said Cynthia McCaffrey, Representative, UNICEF India. “Discussions were held to see how we could support the economy through corporate social responsibility (CSR) by collaborating with the corporate sector, government, civil society, academia for evidence, organisations such as UNICEF, and the communities.”

Speaking on the innovation and knowledge networks of the business sector, McCaffrey noted that these investments would help impact the lives of children.

S. Narasimhan, Chairman, CII SR Task Force, said: “The member companies of the CII invest a lot of CSR into childhood development. We discussed with UNICEF to see how we could actuate more such projects together. It’s not just money to invest but also could be in the form of manpower or infrastructure engagement in the projects.”

Photo Credit: B. JOTHI RAMALINGAM Cynthia McCaffrey, Representative, UNICEF India, at the roundtable conference held in Chennai on Thursday.