WOCCU Chairman Addresses CU League of China AGM

Madison, WI-Recently, World Council of Credit Unions, Inc. (WOCCU) Chairman, L.R. (Bobby) McVeigh, addressed a gathering of dignitaries at the Annual General Meeting of the Credit Union League of the Republic of China (CULROC). Attendees included Mr. Charles Yip, President of the Asian Confederation of Credit Unions (ACCU), Mr. Wallis Pelin, President of the Credit Union League of China and other distinguished guests.

Mr. McVeigh's address thanked CULROC for its continued efforts in the worldwide credit union movement. Presently, CULROC consists of 345 credit unions representing more than 188,000 members and lists assets, in savings and loans, exceeding 810 million dollars. Through ACCU's associate membership, he noted, each credit union in Asia is linked to the international credit union movement, and he thanked ACCU for their support and encouraged their further consideration for full WOCCU membership in order to enable Asian credit unions to take full advantage of WOCCU's products and services, as well as giving them voting rights in the general assembly.

He spoke of the important role that credit unions in the Republic of China play in promoting financial stability throughout the region and their ability to ease the burden on growing international tension. The Chairman then applauded the cooperative efforts of CULROC leaders as they sought to provide safe, sound financial services to those without access to them.

Chairman McVeigh thanked President Wallis for his initiative in creating a project to strengthen the connection between volunteerism and social commitment in order to compel the government to recognize their importance to the credit union movement. He also said that the League deserves government recognition for its more than 40 years of community linkages and volunteerism. The Chairman also stressed that credit unions exist to serve the larger, global community, "to help people to help themselves," that they, "contribute to the economic and social progress of entire countries," and, "share the human rights of financial empowerment, democracy and equal opportunities." He further pointed out that credit unions, "promote democracy, equality and diversity – all underlying cooperative principles essential to the 'new world.'"

The Chairman closed his address by pointing out the bright future for the credit union movement and presenting the assemblage with new challenges. He advised them to continue to look to the future of the credit union movement by providing more services to youth members. He also recommended that they continue to follow the principles of co-operation and self-help upon which credit unions were initially built and that guide the credit union movement today.

The complete text of the Chairman's address can be found here.

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World Council of Credit Unions is the global trade association and development agency for credit unions. World Council promotes the sustainable development of credit unions and other financial cooperatives around the world to empower people through access to high quality and affordable financial services. World Council advocates on behalf of the global credit union system before international organizations and works with national governments to improve legislation and regulation. Its technical assistance programs introduce new tools and technologies to strengthen credit unions' financial performance and increase their outreach.

World Council has implemented more than 290 technical assistance programs in 71 countries. Worldwide, 51,000 credit unions in 100 countries serve 196 million people. Learn more about World Council's impact around the world at www.woccu.org.