Safe Money: Building Effective Credit Unions in Latin America
Westley, G.D. & Branch, B. & Eds.
Publication Date: 2000
Published by: IADB - Inter-American Development Bank
Document Type: Book
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What are the challenges for credit unions and what is the new environment?
The authors build on the results of 1998 Latin American credit union development meetings. The book analyses major challenges and opportunities facing credit unions and provides recommendations to effective credit union development in the region today. They emphasise that:
- Credit unions are providing 80 percent of all microcredit in Latin America providing financial services to small businesses and low-income households, which normally lack fair and safe financial alternatives;
- Being community-based, credit unions have a particular advantage in Latin American markets, economic spectrum-enabling members to increase income and wealth with access to microfinance savings and loan programs and providing nearly US$2 billion in credit to microenterprises.
The authors findings show that Latin American credit union performance has improved through:
- Aggressive mobilisation of savings;
- Stricter attention to controlling loan delinquency;
- A policy of capitalizing profits.
They state that recent trends and changes mean that credit unions are facing a new environment and recommend that they will need to address four key issues:
- Rehabilitation;
- The importance of appropriate regulation and supervision;
- Governance;
- Mutual support networking.
[based on WOCCU review]
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