BCUL 8th Annual Convention
Belize Credit Union League 8th Annual Convention and Banquet
The Convention and Banquet was held under the theme “Your Money, Your Choice, Your Credit Union”, at the Belize Biltmore Plaza, on Saturday 17 October 2009. Representatives from all affiliate Credit Unions as well as from the auditing firm of Castillo Sanchez and Burrell attended the Convention, for a total of 186 participants and facilitators.
This year we had some great facilitators with very relevant topics that were well received by all who attended. Mr. Phillip Willoughby from NEMO started off in plenary on “Disaster Preparedness”. The educational breakout sessions were facilitated as follows:
- Anti-money laundering - Mrs. Marilyn Williams, FIU
- Shareholders’ rights and Responsibilities – Ms Angela Reneau, Central Bank of Belize and Mr. Miguel Garcia, BCUL
- Internal Controls in Financial Institutions - Mrs. Carlyn Roy, Oregon Federal Credit Union and
- Financial Institution Governance – Mr. Rick Weger, Canadian Cooperative Association.
Mr. Carlos Santos was the MC at the Banquet later in the evening, which was enjoyed -for the most part- by 216 cooperators and friends. Mrs. Roy our guest speaker addressed us on the impact of the world economy on credit unions. Several people won prizes of local wines, telephones, and one fortunate couple won a weekend at a resort in Cayo. The evening ended with dancing by music from Sam Hamilton and Zoila Clarke.
CCCU Board Meeting
The Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions is a support group for credit unions throughout the region. Representatives from member states are here in Belize attending a conference at the Radisson Fort George Hotel. In this era of global financial crisis, the president of the confederation, Michael Alleyene, feels it is necessary for Belizean credit unions that manage millions of dollars, to strengthen their weaknesses and avoid any economic collapse.
Michael Alleyene, President, Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions
“We are here as part of program. The board of the Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions usually holds board meetings in the regions where the affiliates are from. This time we’ve chosen Belize because we got a new member on board; Mr. Burgos. We want to highlight the contribution of the movement of the credit union. We want to assist the credit union movement here with any issues that are relevant to the movement itself.”
Jose Sanchez
Are there any issues that the local credit unions are facing in Belize right now?
Michael Alleyene
“As far as I’m aware, there are issues pertaining to governance and regulation. As a matter of fact, we have been meeting with your central bank governor as well as the prime minister on these matters and we’ve had very fruitful discussions. They have set out what are their plans and we’ve been able to discuss with them how best they can put these plans into place in the credit union movement and we stand ready to give that kind of assistance. It’s a matter of implementing the regulations, as we said, governance and especially training, education, how these things are to be done. Legislation and governance are key components of the financial sector. You would know what is happening in this global financial meltdown, there is this whole question of regulation and the Caribbean confederation of credit unions have been pushing regulation and legislation as key components of our operations. We have been placing that on top of our agenda to make sure that we don’t have a situation with any fall outs or things like that. And there is need to educate the local movement here about those kinds of issues: Regulation, governance, etcetera, so that they understand the meaning of reporting and having their finances in top shape.”
Alleyene feels that stronger regulations will also avoid financial impropriety in the credit union industry.
Story was copied from channel 5