RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. - Six members of Congress from California and Nevada - Reps. Bob Filner (D-Calif.), Tom Lantos (D-Calif.), Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Elton Gallegly (R-Calif.), Grace Napolitano (D-Calif.) and Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.) - recently signed a letter to Congressional appropriations leaders urging full funding for the U.S. Agency for International Development's (USAID) Cooperative Development program, which provides vital funding for the World Council of Credit Unions. WOCCU uses the funding to work with overseas credit unions to build networks including expanding low-cost transaction services for members including remittances, creating enabling environments, training credit union managers and board members, and extending credit union operations to difficult operating environments such as HIV/AIDS-affected communities, conflict-prone zones, and poverty-entrenched rural areas. California and Nevada credit union leagues EVP Matthew Davidson said, "Some legislators have a hard time seeing the connection between the credit unions they represent in California and Nevada and credit unions in developing countries such as Afghanistan, Nicaragua, the Philippines, Kenya and Ecuador. But these six elected officials truly understand the credit union difference. The Leagues applaud them for recognizing the valuable role of credit unions and other cooperatives in foreign assistance."
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