mentoring the co-operative the return of a lifetime women...
TRANSCRIPT
MentoringWOMEN LEADERS FOR
THE RETURN OF A LIFETIMETHE WOMEN’S MENTORSHIP PROGRAM
The Co-operative Development Foundation of Canada (CDF) is a
registered charity that helps smallholder farmers and producers in developing countries achieve prosperity by building and strengthening financial and non-financial co-operatives and networks. CDF and the Canadian Co-operative Association amalgamated in 2017 under the CDF Canada brand.
www.cdfcanada.coop
“It was an opportunity of a lifetime. Our world is vast but credit unions have many similarities.”
—Canadian host
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT The Co-operative Development Foundation of Canada
400-275 Bank Street, Ottawa, ON K2P 2L6(1) 613 238 6711 (ext 209)
& : /CDFCanada
FUNDED BY
Co-operative Development Foundation of Canada programs are undertaken with the financial support of the Government of Canada provided through Global Affairs Canada.
Les programmes de la FDC sont rendus possibles grâce à l’appui financier du gouvernement du Canada, par l’entremise d’Affaires mondiales Canada.
WHAT’S INVOLVED IN HOSTING?
Each Canadian credit union hosting a Women’s Mentorship Program participant:
• Shares knowledge and skills with their visiting credit union manager, connecting them to credit union staff, policies and best practices.
• Enables their guest to job shadow staff, meet members and observe day-to-day credit union operations.
• Makes their guest feel at home, greeting them on arrival and introducing them to people, places and events in their community.
• Arranges a host family to billet their guest in the home of credit union staff or board members.
• Covers the costs of their own staff time and their guest’s local transportation and lunches. Host families provide breakfast and dinner.
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WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE WMP
W e want to bring this exciting opportunity to more women leaders. While continuing
to host the WMP in Canada, we’re working with overseas partners in Africa and Asia to enable WMP alumae to become mentors to women right in their home countries. WMP is all about breaking barriers. Adding in-country mentoring opportunities will break the barrier of distance which now limits the number of women the program can reach. Eliminating overseas travel means more than reducing costs. It removes language barriers, the need to meet visa requirements, and lessens time away from families.
A BEST PRACTICE FOR CO-OPERATIVE DEVELOPMENT
Women credit union leaders from across the developing world take
on intensive classroom training and a 10-day field placement job-shadowing Canadian credit union managers to improve their knowledge and skills. The learning goes both ways.
Participants learn about loan portfolios, reducing loan delinquency, credit union leadership, marketing, governance, and human resource management. Field placements enrich the learning with one-on-one attention.
Chisomo Chisale, WMP 2016 alumna
In Malawi, Chisomo has made changes that are bringing financial services to more people
in need. Most importantly, she is mentoring other women in her workplace, giving them the confidence she gained through her own mentorship.
Now, it’s time to provide more women with opportunities to empower themselves in Africa and Asia by offering mentorship opportunities in Canada and in their home countries.
“I developed my leadership, communication, negotiation and networking skills. Delinquency in my savings and credit co-operative declined from 16% to 6% in less than one year using the techniques we learned in Canada.”—WMP alumna
“This program has expanded the horizons of women managers. They have new sense of self-confidence, a renewed sense of responsibility and commitment to their cooperative.”
—Sylvester Kadzola, CEO, Malawi Union of Savings and Credit Co-operatives