Two Ohioans Return From CU Project Among Bulgaria's Kasas

As part of activities that may result in a formalized partnership agreement between Ohio and Bulgaria, volunteers from the Ohio Credit Union System-Kathleen Kanipe, CEO, St. Agnes-St. John Toledo FCU and Sara Hanselman, Ohio Credit Union League field consultant-have completed a volunteer assignment with the World Council of CU's Bulgaria project in Sofia. "The Ohio Credit Union System has the expertise to provide valuable legislative technical assistance to kasas," says Paul Mercer, president and CEO of the league. "We look forward to assisting kasas and the WOCCU Bulgaria project office with the challenges it will face in the future."

Among the challenges, according to the league, is the reaction to the numerous pyramid schemes in the mid-90s, which robbed countless Bulgarians of their savings, leading the government to pass restrictive legislation that authorized share accounts, but prevented withdrawable deposit accounts. The volunteers worked for two weeks with project office staff and one on one with kasa management to select participants for "Model Kasa" development in WOCCU's institutional strengthening project.