WASHINGTON, D.C.—Oscar Guzman, chief of party with the World Council of Credit Unions’ Economic Inclusion Project, told attendees at the 2023 Cooperative IMPACT Conference that cooperatives play an “integral role” in the socioeconomic integration of Venezuelan migrants in Peru and Ecuador.
Participating in a roundtable discussion on “Cooperatives and Social Inclusion” at the annual event hosted by NCBA CLUSA, Guzman discussed EIP’s approach to partnering with credit unions and other cooperatives to give Venezuelans more opportunities for both economic and social inclusion in their new countries of residence, according to WOCCU.
‘They Need People’
“(Cooperatives) realize that there’s a turnover of their older staff in Peru and Ecuador and they need people. And there are Venezuelans—thousands of Venezuelans—professional, with experience, with the capacity and skills to join the cooperatives and the credit unions,” said Guzman. “So, we started with them on joint platforms, for example, not only to bring together the demand and supply of labor, but also to give credit and mentoring to the Venezuelans too.”
Guzman said partnerships with credit unions and other cooperatives in both countries are paying dividends, not only for EIP, but potentially for millions of Venezuelans.
“We work with 10 financial cooperatives or credit unions in both countries and now, we see banks, microfinance institutions and others approaching us to say, ‘you know, we see this as an opportunity’,” Guzman continued. “And now that the credit unions opened the vision, the opportunity, those entities will serve other migrants and refugees. Because we as a project have served 110,000 (Venezuelans), but there still are millions of people that need access to financial services.”
Integration is Prioritized
WOCCU noted that the Economic Inclusion Project, which is funded by USAID, “prioritizes the socioeconomic integration of migrants, refugees and local populations to improve living conditions for them and their families in a sustainable manner, positively impacting the harmonious development of society and the economic development of Peru, Ecuador and greater Latin America.”
According to WOCCU, Guzman was one of several staff members who participated in the Conference, with the organization also represented on an afternoon panel discussion on how cooperatives leverage digital technologies to meet member needs.
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