Paraguay/Minnesota International Partnership Continues to Grow

MCUN Board Chair Addresses International Conference in Paraguay

(l-r): Victor Corro of WOCCU, MnCUN board chairman Bill Raker and CENCOPAN board president Modesto Segovia Boltes.

Asuncion, Paraguay – Central de Cooperativas del Area Nacional (CENCOPAN)' s international seminar, "Cooperatives: Viable Alternatives for Economic and Social Development, Emphasis on Microfinance, Regulation, Technology and Cooperative Communication" was held June 2nd and 3rd in Asuncion, Paraguay. In attendance were World Council of Credit Unions' (WOCCU) international partnership manager, Victor Corro, and William Raker, board chair of CECOPAN's international partner Minnesota Credit Union Network (MnCUN). MnCUN and CENCOPAN have been working together for the past two years and signed a formal International Partnership Program agreement in May of 2004. Their areas of focus are (1) legislation and lobbying, (2) relationship with regulators and (3) technology.

At CENCOPAN's invitation, Raker presented a proposal for advancing to newer technology to the 400 conference attendees. Included in his presentation was an outline of the findings of a technology assessment conducted in October, 2004 by IT representatives from MnCUN and WOCCU, recommendations for advance, suggestions for preliminary steps, and an explanation of the benefits of taking such steps.

"It may be easier to find reasons why [technological improvements] can't be done than it is to commit to doing what must be done, but the only eventual choice is to do it," Raker told the attendees. "Acknowledging that positive, committed, and focused mindset early on... is the first step and most important step you can make."

Among his recommendations were careful and selective deployment of technology, the establishment of common or uniform standards for hardware and software, and most importantly, cooperation. "Cooperating is at the very heart of our fundamental philosophy of credit unions," Raker said. "It is our mission not only to help our members, but to assist one another."

Another of Raker's cornerstone recommendations was the formation of a CENCOPAN technology council to "confirm the shared need to advance technology for the benefit of all." Representatives from CENCOPAN assured Corro they would seriously consider Raker's suggestion. "It is a very innovative idea, especially to include credit unions of all sizes so that everyone has an equal voice," Corro said.

Following their speeches at the conference, Raker (left) and Corro (right) were interviewed by popular Paraguayan radio personality Cynthia Noguera, labeled a "media superstar" and known as the "Oprah Winfrey of Paraguay."

The benefits of such investments in technology, according to Raker, are better service to members, the ability to offer more products and services, improved productivity of staff, increased accuracy, better security, and overall reduced costs.

Also in attendance at the conference was Antonio Ortiz, president of Instituto Nacional de Cooperativismo (INCOOP), Paraguay's credit union regulator. Raker and Corro spoke with Ortiz and also visited with the USAID representative working for the U.S. Ambassador's office in an effort to educate and update them on the efforts of WOCCU and its International Partnerships.

Following their speeches at the conference, Raker and Corro were interviewed by a TV station, trade press reporters, and participated in two one-hour radio interviews.

El Consejo Mundial de Cooperativas de Ahorro y Crédito es la asociación gremial y agencia de desarrollo para el sistema internacional de cooperativas de ahorro y crédito. El Consejo Mundial promueve el crecimiento sustentable de las cooperativas de ahorro y crédito y otras cooperativas financieras en todo el mundo a fin de facultar a las personas para que mejoren su calidad de vida a través del acceso a servicios financieros asequibles y de alta calidad. El Consejo Mundial realiza esfuerzos de defensa activa en representación del sistema global de las cooperativas de ahorro y crédito ante organizaciones internacionales y trabaja con gobiernos nacionales para mejorar la legislación y la regulación. Sus programas de asistencia técnica introducen nuevas herramientas y tecnologías para fortalecer el desempeño financiero de las cooperativas de ahorro y crédito y profundizar su alcance comunitario.

El Consejo Mundial ha implementado 290 programas de asistencia técnica en 71 países. A nivel mundial, 51,000 cooperativas de ahorro y crédito en 100 países atienden a 196 millones de personas. Obtenga más información sobre el impacto global del Consejo Mundial en www.woccu.org.