The Worldwide Foundation for Credit Unions, the charitable arm of the World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU), recognized its decade-long development partnership with Haiti at its annual reception for “Champion” supporters on Mar. 10. This year’s celebration, held at the Anderson House on Embassy Row, also provided Champions with a look at the upcoming work WOCCU will be doing to provide prosperity to thousands-more Haitian members through the credit union model.
Claude Clodomir, project director for WOCCU’S Haiti Home Ownership and Mortgage Expansion (HOME) initiative, provided an update on how the project has leveraged $1.6 million in USAID incentives to local developers and financial institutions. Those incentives have stimulated $15 million worth of local capital investment in housing developments, allowing many low- and middle-income Haitian families to achieve their dream of homeownership for the first time.
"We are on the verge of creating a revolution in the housing sector," Clodomir told the crowd of Champions. "I've been working for World Council since 2010 and I can tell you, in my experience as a Haitian, access to financial services is the key to successful development there."
“The capacity of World Council’s International Development Programs is supported by the Worldwide Foundation through its Priority Fund to expand and grow its project development team’s ability to acquire and grow projects, like Haiti HOME, in partnership with USAID," said Michael Reuter, executive director of the Worldwide Foundation for Credit Unions. "The end goal is to continue to offer financial inclusion to millions-more members through the credit union model. It’s our mantra of Doing Global Good."
Our Champion reception brought more than 400 credit union professionals together from across the U.S. They all share the philosophy that supporting the global credit union system is both good for business and for advancing the credit union philosophy of “People Helping People.” The reception is one of two signature events the Foundation offers its Champions to network and see the impact of their support through specific development projects.
Another Champion reception will be hosted in the Bahamas during the World Credit Union Conference on July 29. That celebration will highlight the Foundation’s disaster-relief efforts in partnership with the Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions and its members.
