ZAGREB, Croatia–A delegation of Ukrainian credit union professionals participated in a study tour hosted by the Croatian Association of Credit Unions and led by USAID/World Council of Credit Unions’ (WOCCU) Credit for Agriculture Producers (CAP) Project.
According to the World Council, the primary goal of the tour was to provide the Ukrainians with lessons their Croatian colleagues learned from supporting communities in a post-war period, and in aligning their credit union activities with European Union (EU) standards.
“This is timely and important knowledge for the credit union sector in Ukraine, which is trying to establish similar protocols as the country continues to fight against Russia’s ongoing full-scale invasion,” WOCCU said.
WOCCU reported that along with participating in several meetings with Croatian Association officials, the Ukrainian delegation also visited two credit unions in Slavonia, a region that suffered greatly during the Croatian War of Independence (1991-95).
The largest credit union in Croatia, Kreditna unija Jamstvo, which focuses on agricultural lending, and Kreditna Unija Noa, founded after the war as part of a USAID program, each played an important role in regional recovery and increasing financial literacy in their communities.
Meetings With Farmers
The Ukrainian credit union women leaders also met with Croatian farmers who benefit from credit union services and “recognize the advantages that are very well known to members of credit unions around the world—trust, loyalty and fruitful long-term relationships,” WOCCU reported.
“The credit union movement in both countries has many common features, which immediately helped to build effective communication between all participants,” WOCCU said.
According to WOCCU, common challenges were also identified, including a need to:
- Introduce a deposit guarantee system
- Improve digitalization
- Expand the list of products and services available.
A ‘Benefit’ to Both
“This kind of exchange of know-how is a benefit for both Croatian and Ukrainian credit unions, and therefore also for their members,” Petar Barišić, a board member of Kreditna Unija Jamstvo, said in an article published by a Croatian media outlet Zupaniac and shared by WOCCU. "What we are particularly pleased about is that this study tour was just the beginning of cooperation with the Ukrainian credit unions that awaits us in the future, and the economic impact that this kind of cooperation makes possible in the long term is also of great importance."
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