The Minister of Employment and Labour Relations, Nii Armah Ashietey, has advised credit union leaders to compete with other financial instiutions by offering low interest rates. He said it would help them tom compete with other financial institutions, including commercial banks, rural banks loans and savings companies, “susu” companies and micro-financial institutions.
Speaking at the fourth Savings and Credit Co-operative Organisations (SACCO) Leaders Forum in Accra, he said, credit unions would continue to exist to help reduce poverty in the country. The forum, which was on the theme: “Transforming Cooperatives by adpoting the best Management Practices for Sustainability” attracted 117 participants from 14 African countries, two European countries and the United States of America.
They are The Gambia, Kenya, Malawi, Southern Sudan, Botswana, Uganda, Zambia, Nigeria, Swaziland, Sierra Leone, the Seychelles and Zimbabwe. The European countries are Ireland and the United Kingdom.
It focused on key strategic mechanisms on how best to attain sustainable growth and saw the presentation of certificates to deserving participants for their contributions.
According to the Nii Ashietey, “when credit unions operate well, they draw the considerable energy and resources of the entire community into an effort of alleviating poverty”. He urged the unions to assist the informal sector in order to make them realise their potential, as well as supplement their efforts to make available technical and material assistance accessible to them.
The Minister of Co-operative and Rural Development of Southern Sudan, Mr Michael Tongun, said co-operative leaders should go to the aid of the less-priviliged and identify their challenges to address them accordingly. “The poor forms the largest population in the world and it is in view of this that leaders see their welfare and protection as a divine calling to provide support and attention to alleviate poverty and social vices from the continent,” he stressed.
The General Manager of the Credit Unions Association, Mr Emmanuel O. Darko, said saving was a tool for human development and that Ghanaians should learn how to manage their limited resources for the benefit of unborn generations.
DAILY GRAPHIC, 20th March 2013