GOVERNMENT must partner with the co-operative societies to combat the rising cost of living.

"[Government must] provide opportunities for our co-operative societies to produce healthy foods for our members and for the greater country so that our people can live longer.

"From our end, as credit unionists, we believe that we need to strengthen our relationship with farming organisations and we believe that we have to set up small businesses so that the abilities of those associations can be felt and reach to many people in society including those outside the credit union movement," said president of the Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions, Julian Jack, of St Vincent.

Jack said credit unions were leaders when it came to poverty eradication, and "I want them to pay attention to it because credit unions have been able to reach the very poor, middle-class and the even those who have gone from middle-class to very powerful, rich people".

"We can take an opinion that the credit union have put them there," he said, as he addressed the Barbados Co-operative & Credit Union League Ltd's cocktail reception at Accra Beach Hotel, Rockley, Christ Church, on Friday.

He said legislation was needed to assist the movement in helping the country develop especially during this time of high cost of living.

Have ability

"In the co-operative movement, we believe we have the ability, the reach and the association to move society back to producing foods that are healthy . . . and reduce the cost of living."

Minister with responsibility for the Co-operative Movement George Hutson agreed there was a need for certain legislative changes to deal with some of the credit unions' challenges, but said its success story has also created a number of challenges.

"I refer to the debate with respect to the regulation of the larger credit unions; formation of a financial services commission in Barbados to regulate and supervise the non-banking financial sector, in which the credit unions are substantial entities; and competition between the banking sector and credit unions particularly with regard to the types of financial instruments that may be offered by the credit unions," Hutson said.

In addition, he said the non-credit union co-operatives, needed "institutional strengthening, centralisation of the administrative functions and of marketing activities".

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