KINGSTON, Jamaica–With credit unions holding 65% market share in the Caribbean, many in the region have turned to their CUs for support during the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to a webinar titled “Credit Unions & COVID-19: The Regional Response.”
It featured leaders from several Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions' (CCCU) national member associations. The CCCU is World Council's direct member organization in the Caribbean that represents 212 credit unions with 2.4 million members in 17 countries, the association said.
Calling the COVID-19 pandemic a "seismic disruption to our social and economic life," WOCCU reported CCCU Board President Winston Fletcher said the league has donated more than $100,000 toward the purchase of personal protective equipment for credit union staff across the Caribbean, as well as doctors, nurses and other frontline workers.
‘Hope to Make a Difference’
"We hope that it will make a difference in the lives of our members and the broader society,” said Fletcher, who also serves as president of the Jamaica Co-operative and league.
According to WOCCU, members of the national associations expressed concern for credit union members made vulnerable by the loss of employment and income.
“As you are aware, credit unions were born out of difficult times. And now more than ever, we have to ensure that the most vulnerable in our society are afforded the opportunity to live and provide livelihoods for themselves and their children," said Hally Haynes, president of the Barbados Co-operative and Credit Union League (BCCULT).
Haynes said his league is in the process of setting up criteria to respond to the most vulnerable credit union members on Barbados with cash or in-kind grants, WOCCU reported.
BCCULT is also advocating for regulatory forbearance and for the inclusion of credit unions in the national payments system.
Relief in Trinidad and Tobago
On Trinidad and Tobago, the government is stepping in to help with funds that credit unions can tap into for member relief, WOCCU reported.
"Included in that stimulus measure that was announced by the government was a plan to provide a liquidity support program to the credit union movement, for affected credit union members, to the tune of $100 million," said Joseph Remy, president of the Co-operative and Credit Union League of Trinidad and Tobago.
Dr. Andre Vincent Henry, director of the Cipriani Collage of Labour and Co-operative Studies, and Lambert Johnson, 1st vice president of the Jamaica Co-operative Credit Union League also made presentations, WOCCU said.
The webinar, which was presented by the Cipriani College of Labour and Co-operative Studies (CCLCS) in partnership with the Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions (CCCU) and the Co-operative Credit Union League of Trinidad and Tobago (CCULTT), was the first in a planned series.
WOCCU said the first webinar can be watched in its entirety on the CCLCS YouTube Channel.