MADISON, Wis.—The World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) has been awarded a $1.8-million grant from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) to launch a climate finance pilot, WOCCU reported.
The pilot initiative, to be launched in 2025, will introduce a holistic, scalable methodology and digital tools to select credit union networks located in the West African Economic and Monetary Union, allowing them to manage climate risk and offer climate adaptation finance solutions to vulnerable populations, WOCCU said.
WOCCU said it will use the award to build the capacity of credit union networks in Benin, Senegal and Togo to strengthen the resilience of their members through climate adaptation finance. It will offer user-friendly digital tools from YAPU Solutions, backed by technical support, performance-based grants and data-driven strategies to assess climate risks and monitor investments.
“These tools will enable participating networks to identify, onboard and finance locally viable adaptation solutions. The pilot project aims to establish a scalable framework for climate adaptation finance within credit unions,” WOCCU said.
"As communities in every corner of the world become vulnerable to climate shocks, we are starting to see banks, insurance companies and other financial service providers reduce exposure to riskier markets. But credit unions are stepping up to help their members build resilience and adapt,” said WOCCU President and CEO Elissa McCarter LaBorde. “At WOCCU, we recognize the essential role credit unions play. This partnership with YAPU Solutions in West Africa presents an exciting opportunity to design and test a model that could be replicated in more places across our global membership of over 400 million people in more than 100 countries."