Mmockmbie Credit Union wins Fastest-growing Microfinance Award.

The credit union again mounted the podium of greatness for the third consecutive year, to clinch the Fastest-growing Microfinance Institution Award.

This was during The Guardian Post Achievement Award, an initiative of Cameroon’s most regularly-published, widely-read, authoritative, credible and leading print media organ, The Guardian Post.

The award ceremony in Douala Saturday March 4 brought together a cream of personalities from across the country.

Mmockmbie Credit Union Cooperative was voted by millions of readers of The Guardian Post spread across the globe.

Speaking at the ceremony, the Publisher/Editor-In-Chief of The Guardian Post, Ngah Christian Mbipgo, said the award is to recognise individuals and institutions that have, through extraordinary ways, gone the extra mile to serve the population.

Ngah said the recognitions are based on the decision of readers of The Guardian Post and are meant for posterity.

On his part, the President of The Guardian Post Achievement Award jury, Richard Nde Lajong, explained that the choice of Mmockmbie Cooperative Credit Union for the Fastest-growing Microfinance Institution Award, was not that of an individual.

He said the bank emerged winner in the category for “taking services closer to members, opening up new branches and introducing international money transfer services that have greatly boosted membership”.

Nde Lajong explained that the final choice of winners in the different categories was a product of the assessment of millions of readers of The Guardian Post; spread across the globe.

He said the committee met several times to catalogue the nominations and choices of readers before compiling the final winners in the different categories.

“We held meetings sometimes late into the night to ensure that winners are people whose credibility is not in doubt. The committee comprises of jurists, journalists and members of the civil society,” Nde Lajong explained.

MmoCCUL GM dedicates award to staff, members

Speaking after receiving the award, the General Manager of Mmockmbie Cooperative Credit Union, Ngezem Fortsomo Skyly, expressed gratitude to The Guardian Post for the award.

He said the award was merited recognition of the hard work of their qualified staff as well as the commitment of their growing members.

“I am very happy and fulfilled for this wonderful realisation. It is the fruit of intense efforts put in by the team of qualified staff with the participation of our very active members that we are being handed this award,” the General Manager said. 

“This is the third award MmoCCUL is winning. We received a similar award in 2020 from VIMMA and another in 2021 from the Rainbow Cooperative Credit Union Ltd Cameroon, RainbowCam network. If today The Guardian Post is coming in to add more flesh to all these awards, then we should say thank you for recognising the efforts put in place,” he added.

“We want to thank our members and to give them our assurances that we will continue to give them our best of our services,” the GM promised.

“...we have envisaged to train our staff to improve service quality. They will have six training sessions this year. We will hire experts to come and keep giving them the best of training so that they deliver the best to our members,” the GM assured. 

Zooms strides recorded by MmoCCUL

The General Manager explained that MmoCCUL prides self to have merited the award based on the number of accounts it creates and the geometric progression in the number of members.

“Just in 2022, we created 1,836 accounts. The friendly interest rates that we give to our members also encourages a good number of them to keep coming,” Ngezem Fortsomo said, adding that the the international transfers that MmoCCUL is currently into has also pulled the credit union more members and it a one stop union.

“MmoCCUL is one of those credit unions in the country that goes closest to its members. We have gone digital. Members can save from the comfort of their homes. We have been able to create so many branches nationwide,” he added, noting that the credit union is represented in Douala with two branches, in Buea, Bamenda, Yaounde, Dschang, Bafoussam.

“Before the month of May, we will be having one of the newest branches for 2023 that will make the second for 2023 in Messasi, Yaounde,” the General Manager assured.

Harping on advantages of belonging to MmoCCUL, Ngezem Fortsomo, boasted of the flexibility of the institution’s staff, services which make it a one stop union, and their very friendly nature to members.

“We have the lowest interest rate so far in the market. We pay interest at 4%, one of the highest in the entire nation and the entire CEMAC Sub-region,” he added.  

Revisits announced innovations

The General Manager said innovations announced in January during MmoCCUL Annual General Meeting, AGM, will soon go into effect.

He cited, among others, the introduction of ATMs by the end of the month of March in the Yaounde and Dschang branches to ease cash withdrawal.

“Our members will be branded with our VISA cards, meaning you can have access to your funds at any moment wherever you visit any ATM...,” he disclosed.  

Services now offered free to customers

Worth recalling is the fact that during the AGM, MmoCCUL announced certain services that are now being offered for free to members.

This includes among others, cheque booklets, bank statements and account domestication.

Aside international money transfer services, the credit union is also putting in plans to have applications that will permit members carry out operations from the comfort of their homes before the end of the year.

The credit union also has as goal to woo Cameroonians in the diaspora to trust and patronise the credit union by becoming members.

Members of MmoCCUL, it should be said, can send money through Mobile Money, and Western Union. Services of RIA Money Transfer, MoneyGram and WorldRemit, the officials promised, will go operational to make in the months ahead to Mmockmbie a complete one-stop credit union.

Enticing interest rates on savings, loans

Though just six years in the business, MmoCCUL is among microfinance institutions offering the highest interest rates (4%) on savings and among the lowest on loans (1.5%).

The peculiarity of loans from MmoCCUL is that the interest on loans progressively reduces as payment progresses. MmoCCUL is owned and managed by its members under Registration No: COOPGIC REG. N° 17/035/CMR/SW/55/290/CCA/360/3601.

With its motto: “Save Regularly, Borrow Wisely, Pay Promptly and Build Self-confidence”, the microfinance institution mobilises savings and grants loans to its members at low interest rates as well as provides members with other financial services aimed at improving their economic status and social well-being.