Aripina Jayalaxmi is UK Deputy High Commissioner for a Day

Jaya is a social activist from Hyderabad and was raised in a family of waste collectors. She champions marginalized communities, advocating for equality in health, education, and gender. She was Prime Minister of the Provisional World Children’s Parliament and is a dedicated educator, currently teaching 30 children from her community. Jaya’s ambition is to join the Indian Administrative Services andis recognized for her resilience, leadership, and social commitment.

As the Deputy High Commissioner for the Day, Jaya interacted with various organisations:

• Ministry of External Affairs, Jaya spoke with Snehaja Jonnalagadda, the Regional Passport Officer, about her career as a senior IFS officer.

• My Choices Foundation, where Jaya and on-ground team discussed their mutual goal to combat gender-based violence.

• At WE-Hub, Jaya had the opportunity to meet women start-up founders and hear about their entrepreneurshipjourneys.

• With the DAZNleadership team, Jaya heard about how a global sports streaming platform fosters an inclusiveworkplace environment that values equality and diversity.

Commenting on her memorable day, Jaya said,“It was an honour to serve as Deputy High Commissioner for a Day. This incredible opportunity has given me invaluable insights into the life of a diplomat andinspired me to continue working towards transformative change in my community.”

To apply to be the ‘Deputy High Commissioner for a Day’, participants recorded a one-minute video answering ‘How can the UK and India collaborate on technology to benefit future generations?’. Jaya took charge as the Deputy High Commissioner on 25th November which is also the start of the UN’s 16 days of activism against gender-based violence. The ‘Deputy High Commissioner for a Day’ competition has run annually since 2017.