South Korea’s primary financial mutual, the Korean Federation of Community Credit Cooperatives (KFCC), also known as Saemaul Geumgo, is opening its first branch in Fiji.
KFCC ran a capacity building workshop in December for Fiji government officials and village leaders in preparation for the 2024 opening of Fiji Saemaul Geumgo.
Participants spent ten days at the MG Human Resources Development Institute in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, learning about KFCC’s systems, including governance, savings and loans.
As well as practical training, the workshop included study visits to Saemaul Geumgo offices as well as a visit to Google Korea, who are partnering with KFCC on the Fiji project.
Google’s Asia-Pacific lead, Timothy Paolini, said the partnership is part of an “effort of establishing a digital platform for financial inclusion in developing countries including Fiji”.
The workshop was delivered as part of the South Korean Interior Ministry’s official development assistance project, and also provided opportunities for discussion on the expansion of Fiji Saemaul Geumgo and KFCC’s digital financial inclusion work.
KFCC has been expanding its financial inclusion model in developing countries since 2016. In this time, 58 overseas branches have been opened, operated by the local village communities, including in Myanmar, Uganda and Laos.
