Tej Kohli Foundation Corporate Philanthropy

The Tej Kohli Foundation was founded in 2005 as an autonomous non-profit organization by Mr Tej Kohli, an exceedingly successful entrepreneur with multiple interests around the globe including Costa Rica, India, the United Kingdom, the UAE and other parts of the Persian Gulf, as well as North and South America.

The Tej Kohli Foundation was born out of Mr. Kohli’s determination to help disadvantaged children break out of the vicious cycle of poverty that they are caught in. Through more than three decades of wealth and success, Mr Kohli, never forgot his humble beginnings. Given the struggles he endured growing up as a child in India, he vowed to try and ensure that other children would not have to endure the hardship and adversity that he, himself had experienced.

Funded entirely by Mr. Kohli, the Foundation began by providing education resources and funding for educational opportunities for underprivileged children in Costa Rica. Continuing to endow needy children with the priceless opportunity for schooling, enables them develop and realize their innate potential, giving them a chance to break free from the shackles of poverty, which condemns generation after generation to a life of miserable squalor, bereft of hope.

* As part of its remit, the Tej Kohli Foundation provides a wide range of social welfare programs in Costa Rica to those most in need of it. These include:
* The distribution of food and regular nutritious meals, especially for the young and the sick
* Educational opportunities for the impoverished, including adults, with an emphasis on in-depth practical knowledge and its application in day-to-day living, preparing them for the global marketplace
* Provision of durable and clean clothes to the destitute
* Advanced medical care where needed and deemed appropriate
The Foundation's outreach program in Costa Rica now assists more than 125 students and adheres to a strict open door, non-discriminatory policy, welcoming young women as well as young men to avail of its programs.

"Through education," Mr Kohli says regarding the Foundations work in Costa Rica, "these students can enjoy the wide range of possibilities denied to their elders."

It was only natural that, at some stage, the Tej Kohli Foundation would extend its activities to India, Mr. Kohli’s homeland.

In 2010, the Foundation embarked on a corneal replacement program that promises to bring light into the lives of thousands of people in his homeland with the gift of vision.

Blindness is one of the most challenging of public health problems in India. At more than 14 million, India has by far the largest population of blind persons in the world. Of these, as many as 2 million children could benefit from corneal transplants.

The Foundation has announced its support for a major corneal transplant program, but Mr Kohli recognizes that surgery alone is not the solution for this problem in India. “The notable lack of well-trained surgeons and nurses contributes to the difficulty, as does poorly equipped and maintained clinical facilities, eye bank facilities that are often unreliable as well as the inconsistency in long-term care,” said Mr. Kohli. “We are planning to launch a clinic as part of the effort to provide tangible solutions.”

Apart from the corneal transplant program, the Foundation will focus its attention on five other key areas in India: Education for under-privileged children, nutrition for impoverished children, vocational training for people with disabilities, and rural health care and empowerment for wom

Through these various programs, Mr Kohli hopes to enable those less fortunate, to gain access to facilities and opportunities that will enable them to truly live their dreams.

"It was never my intention to be known as a philanthropist," says the reticent Mr Kohli. "I thought it was kind of arrogant to talk about your charity work, but after friends saw my name listed as a donor to one cause, I saw them respond by giving. That's when I realized there is value in letting your philanthropy be known."

"One of the aims of the Foundation, and something I hold very dear, is to nurture the age-old traditions of charity, and social help. In short, I want every person with whom I come into contact, whether they're students at the Foundation, or CEOs of my subsidiary companies, to understand the purpose and position of philanthropy and social responsibility in our 21st century world," he says.

"Success should not be achieved - or celebrated - in isolation," he points out.