Microfinance institution Grameen Koota has received the ISC-FICCI 2017 award for Best Financial Accessibility for Sanitation for its efforts in providing access to affordable credit to its customers to build toilets. Grameen Koota director Sumit Kumar received the award from Suresh Prabhu, union minister for railways, at the India Sanitation Conclave 2017 in New Delhi. The award citation said Grameen Koota has been recognized for increasing financial accessibility in rural Karnataka and Maharashtra through their three-pronged approach – Creating awareness among people in their operational areas, imparting training on various aspects of Sanitation and providing access to affordable credit for toilet construction to needy Grameen Koota customers. Udaya Kumar, MD and CEO of Grameen Koota, said the award makes the institution and its partners proud to be associated with its work. Vinatha M. Reddy, chairperson of Grameen Koota, said it will be the endeavour of the institution to make all our customers free from open-defecation by 2 October 2019, on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary.
