Credit unions in Liberia have joined a consortium of international organizations and the Liberian government to raise awareness and desensitize the public about the threat of ebola. But credit unions' small numbers in that country and a slowdown in development efforts raise the question of how effective their efforts may be.

The country's nascent credit union movement headed by the Liberian Credit Union National Association on Aug. 20 joined with World Council of Credit Unions, the Irish League of Credit Unions and the Central Bank of Liberia to form Credit Unions Against Ebola. The group, which also includes Lonestar Cell Mobile Money and the Cooperative Development Agency, has pledged to help Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf's administration combat the spread of the disease.

Ebola, which first surfaced in March but hit epidemic proportions in June, has already claimed 4,818 lives in West Africa, of which 2,697 deaths occurred in Liberia, according to a Nov. 5 BBC News report.

In addition to the crippling conditions caused by epidemic's deadly effects, however, the consortium may have additional struggles as the nation's credit union development efforts slow in the face of the disease's progression, according to Peter Graves, SVP of technical services for World Council.

“We pulled out Patrick Muriuki, our chief of party in Liberia, in June when the outbreak occurred and sent him home to Kenya,” Graves said. “It' a matter of time before the virus will be halted and Patrick can return to once again ramp our efforts back up.”

All staff serving members wore protective groves and members were required to wash their hands with soap and chlorinated water before and after service, Graves said.

“We've had cases where some credit union staff have resigned because of the risks involved while those who suspected they may be exposed quarantined themselves. There has been remarkable reduction in savings, while a large number has withdrawn their entire savings,” Patrick Muriuki, chief of party/project director for the World Council, said.

At one time, Liberia had 71 credit unions with an aggregate US$10 million in assets and 20,000 members prior to the country's two civil wars in 1989 and 2003, according to World Council's program brief on the country. The uprisings, which cost 200,000 people their lives and displaced 1.8 million of the country's population of 2.8 million, all but decimated Liberia's credit union movement.

Prior to the ebola outbreak, World Council was working with four regional credit unions, which at the time served about 5,000 members, Graves said. The credit unions' efforts included attracting potential members away from village-based mom-and-pop financial operations and enrolling them in the credit unions, which offered more services and were a safer place to conduct financial business.

“We are able to continue with some of the activities with only four regional credit unions, especially on implementing internal controls to ensure staff do not take advantage of the scourge to run away with member funds,” Muriuki said.

The Madison, Wis.-based international trade group implemented a US$2.45 million project funded by the United Nations Capital Development Fund through its MicroLead program. The project, which runs from 2013-2017, is aimed at expanding access to savings and improving the livelihoods of poor and low-income households through access to finance.

“One has to be careful that current ebola reports don't mean that people are simply no longer going to clinics,” Graves said. “But it's a matter of time until the virus will be halted and we can ramp back up.”

World Council also expects additional funding for credit union activities due to the financial cooperatives' regional nature, Graves said. As in many developing countries, Liberia's credit unions operate in areas not touched by banks, which gives them added value during the epidemic's recovery, according to Graves.

“They're serving people previously unbanked,” Graves said, “and funding economic activities that will be required as part of the rebuilding process.”

Instant Insights /

Ebola Ails Liberian Credit Union Movement

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