For Details, Contact:
External Affairs
email: pacamail@ncua.gov
Fax: (703) 518-6409

NCUA Hosts Kenyan Cooperative Officials

September 14, 2005, Alexandria, Va., -- The National Credit Union Administration hosted a delegation of Kenyan credit union officials and professionals today at NCUA headquarters in Alexandria. The visit was sponsored by the World Council of Credit Unions.

NCUA Chairman JoAnn Johnson greeted the delegation, which included the chief executive officer from the Kenya Union of Savings and Credit Co-operatives, Ltd. and board members from various Savings and Credit Cooperatives (SACCOs).

“We always appreciate the opportunity to exchange best practices of operating a safe and sound credit union system with our international counterparts and financial cooperatives,” said NCUA Chairman JoAnn Johnson.

The credit union movement in Kenya is the largest in Sub-Saharan Africa. In Kenya, credit unions provide financial services to more than 1.2 million members: 1.5 million urban members and 500,000 rural members. There are 2,664 active SACCOs, with 2,551 urban SACCOs and 113 rural SACCOs. SACCOS are an important part of the financial sector of Kenya, providing savings, credit and insurance services to a large portion of the population.

The Kenyan delegation visited NCUA to gather information about the examination, supervision and operation of U.S. federal credit unions as well as the account protection provided by the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund.

During the day, NCUA officials shared their knowledge and experience pertaining to the federal credit union rulemaking and enforcement, examination and data collection, and the operation of and account protection provided by the National Credit Unions Share Insurance Fund.

The National Credit Union Administration is the independent federal agency that regulates, charters and supervises federal credit unions. NCUA, with the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, operates and manages the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund, insuring the savings of more than 84 million account holders in all federal credit unions and the majority of state-chartered credit unions.