KBC-BRS-Close the Gap: Field visit in Cameroon
Posted on 20/02/2010
Between February 20th and 28th, Close the Gap visited the head office of the Cameroom Cooperative Credit Union League (CamCCUL) in Bamenda along with a delegation of Close the Gap’s “Strategic Partner,” KBC, and “Supportive Partner,” BRS, the Belgian Raiffeisen Foundation.
The objective of this mission was to evaluate the positive outcomes of the partnership between CamCCUL, BRS and Close the Gap. It also gave Close the Gap the opportunity to visit and measure the level of satisfaction of several CamCCUL affiliates. Thanks to the support of BRS, Close the Gap sent 500 PCs, 100 printers, and 450 laptops to CamCCUL in 2008.
At the close of 2009, CamCCUL had 205 affiliated Cooperative Credit Unions spread throughout the ten Regions of Cameroon. Cooperative Credit Unions in Cameroon deal mostly with people with very low incomes. The majority of them need computers to improve on their information management systems as a pre-requisite for their growth and development.
CamCCUL’s restructuring plan embraced the computerization of its network, but was also constrained by the lack of funding for expensive computers for the Credit Unions. However, the partnership between BRS and Close the Gap ultimately resulted in the supply of refurbished computers to these struggling MFIs as a great relief.
www.kbc.be
www.brs-vzw.be
www.camccul.org