Date:22/07/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/07/22/stories/2006072202161900.htm

Back SKS bags award

Our Bureau

Hyderabad , July 21

For the second year in a row, SKS Microfinance of Hyderabad has bagged the CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor) Financial Transparency Award for its demonstrated commitment to financial transparency.

At a joint press conference of SKS and CGAP here, the SKS Founder and CEO, Dr Vikram Akula, received the Transparency Award plaque from the CGAP senior microfinance specialist, Dr Syed Hashemi, along with five borrowers from the villages of Rajampeta and Kothalapoor.

Better performance

According to Ms Jeanette Thomas, the Communications Manager of CGAP, a division of World Bank, the CGAP Financial Transparency Award Competition drew 175 applications from microfinance providers in 57 countries. SKS earned merit recognition demonstrating a `high level of compliance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)'.

In a press release, the CGAP CEO, Ms Elizabeth Littlefield, said, "The institutions, which participated in this year's competition are doing more than improving the world of microfinance. They are helping make microfinance institutions' performance better understood by the general public, a key step to building more inclusive financial systems for the poor."

Empowering the poor

Founded in 1998, SKS Microfinance has provided over Rs 317 crore in loans across 104 branches to nearly 2.6-lakh poor women in five States in India - Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa. The CGAP Award honours SKS for its compliance with International disclosure guidelines, including industry specific CGAP disclosure guidelines and the widely accepted IFRS.

Dr Akula said, "This recognition affirms our long-standing emphasis on institutional transparency.