Twenty Win the 2006 CGAP Financial Transparency Award

CGAP is pleased to announce the winners of the 2006 Financial Transparency Award competition.

Congratulations to this year's winners:

Two hundred and thirty one (231) microfinance institutions in 62 countries entered this year, the highest number to date.

In addition to the winners, an unprecedented number of institutions, 83, received merit recognition. This means they comply substantially with the competition criteria, though not enough to win the award.

The high turn-out and the large number of institutions scoring high on the award is good news for microfinance. It paints a very clear picture of where microfinance is headed today. More and more institutions are taking financial transparency seriously, and making great effort to comply with international and industry reporting guidelines.

Applicants for the Award were judged by a team led by an international audit firm, Moore & Stephens, according to their compliance with international disclosure guidelines, including industry-specific CGAP Disclosure Guideline and the widely accepted International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).

Winners will receive a trophy and a cash prize and will be publicly recognized at regional or national events.

All applicants that met the minimum entry criteria will receive detailed feedback on their performance.

As more and more institutions are following IFRS and industry-specific guidelines in their reporting and as this is becoming the norm rather than the exception, CGAP will restructure the Transparency Award starting from its 2007 round. Instead of awards, the new initiative will issue accreditation-type certificates for MFIs that comply with international financial disclosure guidelines, attached to a brand logo.

Congratulations to all who take on this challenge and improve the visibility of microfinance.