Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be honoured
with the prestigious ‘Golbal Goalkeeper Award’ by the
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for his leadership and commitment to the
Swachch Bharat Abhiyan.
‘Global Goalkeeper Award’, which according to
the Foundation is a “special recognition” that celebrates a political leader
who was ‘demonstrated their commitment to the Global Goals through impactful
work in their country and/or globally’.
Modi will be honoured for his leadership of the
Swachch Bharat Mission, which he had launched on October 2, 2014.
The ambitious mission aims at accelerating the
efforts to achieve universal sanitation coverage in the country by this year as
a tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on his 150th birth anniversary.
So far, 90 million toilets have been built to
eliminate open defecation by October 2, 2019 and currently 98 per cent of India’s
villages have rural sanitation coverage instead of 38 per cent four years ago.
The annual awards, in five categories, are
presented to leaders and individuals for their efforts in achieving the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS).
The categories are Progress, Change-maker,
Campaign, Goalkeepers Voice and the Global Goalkeeper.
