“I take this opportunity to commend the St. Kitts and Nevis National Co-operative League for its stellar performance and wish its four affiliate members continued success in putting its members on a firm financial footing,” Prime Minister Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris said today, Sunday, October 14th, 2018, in his national address to declare Credit Union Week 2018 open.

National Address by Prime Minister and Minister of Finance,
Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris
to Declare Open the Week of Activities for the Local Credit Union Movement
Sunday, October 14th to Saturday, October 20th, 2018
Air Date: Sunday, October 14th, 2018

My Fellow Citizens and Residents,

I am delighted as Prime Minister and Minister of Finance to congratulate the members and staff of the local Credit Union Movement on celebrating what will surely be another successful staging of the Credit Union Week in St. Kitts and Nevis.

Credit Union Week starts today, Sunday, October 14th, 2018, with a morning church service at the Antioch Baptist Church and is sprinkled with a number of radio panel discussions including one this coming Monday night, which will be held from 8:00pm to 10:00pm on ZIZ Radio.

There will also be activities put on by the four affiliate members that make up the St. Kitts and Nevis National Co-operative League, namely the Nevis Co-operative Credit Union Limited, the St. Kitts Co-operative Credit Union Limited, Police Co-operative Credit Union (St. Christopher and Nevis) Limited, and FND Enterprise Co-operative Credit Union Limited.

One such event is the annual St. Kitts Co-operative Credit Union’s Melvin Edwards Excellence Awards Ceremony, which each year recognizes Grade Six students who gain top results in the Test of Standards Examination. It is named for Mr. Melvin Edwards CSM, a recent recipient of the Companion Star of Merit, which is one of the highest civilian honours that the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis bestows on its sons and daughters.

Mr. Edwards, who is an inductee in the African-American Credit Union Hall of Fame, co-founded the St. Kitts Co-operative Credit Union way back in 1982. Before that, he worked from 1974 to 1981 as Director of Youth and Community Development.

The cumulative statistics of the local Credit Union Movement as at December 31st, 2017 showed its Membership stood at 24,917, representing a 5% increase over 2016; its Shares and Deposits were more than EC$277 million, representing a 10% increase over 2016; its Loans were more than EC$236 million, representing a 12% increase over 2016; its Reserves were more than EC$56 million, representing a 30% increase over 2016, and its Assets were more than EC$340 million, representing a 10% increase over 2016 (Source: 2017 Annual Report of the Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions). As at December 31st, 2017, there were 91 full-time employees working in this sector.

On Thursday, October 18th, International Credit Union Day, all of them and their loyal customer base will join the global credit union community in commemorating the 70th Annual International Credit Union Day. As this is a platinum anniversary, the theme for International Credit Union Day 2018 is Find Your Platinum Lining In Credit Unions.

I take this opportunity to commend the St. Kitts and Nevis National Co-operative League for its stellar performance and wish its four affiliate members continued success in putting its members on a firm financial footing.

It is my honour and privilege to declare Credit Union Week 2018 officially open.

May God Bless the Credit Union Movement and its Membership. May God Bless Our Beloved Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis.

END

IMAGE: The Honourable Timothy Harris – Wikipedia