We Cooperate and Save
We thrive and keep going
Our Start:
The idea of Saving and Credit was founded by a group of rural women by the end of 1999, as a result of direct relationship with the Agriculture Development Association (PARC) with rural Palestinian women through its project on social empowerment, and satisfying rural women’s needs to find stable income sources to contribute in helping their families and enhancing their living.
The Saving and Credit program started developing and expanding, considering it an innovative and advanced idea for economic and social development, that suit the Palestinian community’s needs, through providing several saving services, in addition to loaning portfolio that is distinctive and grows rapidly, and dependent on the savings of the association’s members cumulatively.
The program went through four different phases:
- The phase of developing the idea
- The phase of awareness and expanding
- The phase of industrialization
- The phase of independence and sustainability
The industrialization phase was when the Union of Cooperative Associations for Saving and Credit L.L (UCASC) got the needed licensing, from the Cooperative Office in the Ministry of Labour (MoL), to provide their development services, and that was in February, 2005, where UCASC became a legal umbrella for Saving and Credit Associations in Palestine.
The Twelve Saving and Credit Associations working under the framework of UCASC, and who are spread around the country, covering around 224 location, where 154 of them are in Palestinian villages, in addition to 70 ministries, and governmental agencies, 10 associations from the twelve are feminine associations, and only 2 of the 12 associations include males and females, despite all difficulties and circumstances, UCASC accomplished many successes, which resulted in having 5,281 participants in December 31st, 2019, where 85% of those participants are women, and the total of their cumulative savings reached 3,219,187 JOD, and the total number of loans given by the association to its members is around 16,302 loans, with an amount of 31,035,796 JOD until December 31st, 2019.
If we consider the most important indicators of the work of UCASC and the associations who are represented by: Number of members, amounts saved, number and amounts of loans, then we find the success accomplished assures that despite the political situation in Palestine, and the increase in poverty rates, and the decrease in the economic situation, the savings and credit associations accomplished noticed successes, which enhances the importance and role of those associations for their members, especially in those difficult situations, where the associations proved it’s ability to satisfy the needs of women through the saving and credit program.
Those successes also motivated a large number of leaders, central and field staff of associations, to find mechanisms for coordinating, connecting and developing the available sources now, noting that we are sure that the performance of the union and the associations will be more effective and efficient if loans and good circumstances were available.