Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on Wednesday honoured with the Global Goalkeeper award by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for the Swacch Bharat Abhiyan launched by his government. Payal Jangid, a 16-year-old activist from Rajasthan, received the Changemaker award for her movement against child marriages in her village. After receiving the award from Bill Gates, Modi said it is a recognition for the cleanliness mission and the commitment with which 130 crore Indians internalised and spread the message of Swacch Bharat. “When I announced Swacch Bharat, there were adverse comments. But on the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, as I stand here to receive the award, I am doing so on behalf of 130 crore people who made sanitation a part of their lives. I am reminded of the old woman who sold her goats to build toilets in her village, the retired teacher who donated his entire pension and the married woman who sold her mangalsutra to build toilets,” Modi said. Sanitation is goal number 6 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). On September 25, 2015, at the United Nations headquarters in New York, 193 world leaders committed to the 17 SDGs. These are a series of objectives aimed at achieving three goals by 2030 — end poverty, fight inequality and injustice, and fix climate change. Goalkeepers is the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s campaign to accelerate progress towards achieving the SDGs. By sharing stories and data behind the goals through events and an annual report, the foundation hopes to inspire a new generation of leaders — Goalkeepers — who raise awareness of progress, hold their leaders accountable, and drive action to achieve the goals. Modi said it is the people-led nature of Swacch Bharat that sets it apart. “I know of no other country that has done something like this. A WHO report said that it managed to save 3 lakh lives, UNICEF says Swacch Bharat helped every village save Rs 50,000 by preventing diseases and there is a report by BMGF that says the mission helped improve BMI in women and also helped prevent heart diseases in children. It is not just saving the lives and dignity of Indian people but the 11,000 crore toilets helped in boosting rural economy by giving new avenues of income. India is now making massive strides into cooperative federalism,” he said. He also spoke about programmes like Fit India, National Nutrition Mission, Jal Jeevan Mission and the determination to end single-use plastic by 2022. Jangid, who works with the Bachpan Bachao Andolan, spoke about her own escape from being married off as a child. “In Hisla village of Rajasthan, my parents are labourers. Now I am now doing my graduation. My experience shows that every young person is capable of making a difference, all they need is an opportunity.” Among the other awardees are Gregory Rockson from Ghana, who won the award for his work on rural pharmacies and Aya Chhebi of Tunisia for a pan-African, action-oriented, youth-led movement that strives for the participation, development and leadership of African youth. (The author was in New York on the invitation of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation)
