Several representatives of the Minnesota Credit Union Network attended a regional credit union meeting here as part of a partnership between the MCUN and the Central de Cooperativas del Area Nacional (CENCOPAN), a Paraguayan credit union organization. The Minnesotans attended CENCOPAN's annual international conference and 10th anniversary celebration.
Minnesota's credit unions formally entered into a relationship with the Paraguayan credit unions with an agreement signed in March of 2004, when representatives from Paraguay visited the state.
Among those who traveled to Paraguay were MCUN Chairman Bill Raker, president of US FCU; MCUN Secretary/ Treasurer Dick Nesvold of St. Marys FCU; board member Dean Nelson of City-County FCU, and MCUN EVP/General Counsel Dana Hofmann-Geye.
Also joining them on their trip was CUNA Manager of Legislative Affairs Katie Herberger; WOCCU Vice President & Chief Operating Officer Brian Branch; and Interpreter Victor Miguel Corro of WOCCU Program Specialist, Latin America and Caribbean.
In opening comments to the conference, Raker told the 450 attendees on the similarities between credit unions in the U.S. and Paraguay, and discussed the need for legislators and regulators to support credit unions because of the benefits they provide to their members, communities and countries.
During the visit, the Minnesotans also met with Paraguy's vice president, the president of the Congress, and the president of Instituto Nacional de Cooperativismo (INCOOP), Paraguay's credit union regulator.
