As the scarcity and price of fuel in Ukraine increases, more than 17,000 gallons of diesel fuel is being distributed to farmers through the country’s credit unions in time for the autumn harvest.
Through its Fuel Disbursement Program, the World Council of Credit Unions’s (WOCCU) charitable arm, the Worldwide Foundation for Credit Unions (WFCU), has provided 1,329 free fuel coupons to 163 farmers who took out agricultural loans with credit unions as part of the USAID/WOCCU Credit for Agriculture Producers (CAP) project.
Related: Ukrainian credit union numbers fall as Russian shelling worsens
The project was launched in 2016 to strengthen the Ukrainian credit union sector and offer the country’s farmers better access to credit.
“In these difficult times for our country, even under Russia’s constant shelling, Ukrainian farmers continue to operate and care about our food security,” said Volodymyr Sidorovsky, CEO of Credit Union Anisia, which provided fuel coupons to 27 farmers.
“As credit unions, we are happy we can support them, not only through the needed finance, but also – thanks to our international partners and friends – to ensure they have diesel for the autumn harvest season.”
The Fuel Disbursement programme is part of the Ukrainian Credit Union Displacement Fund, a wider set of activities being undertaken by WFCU. The Displacement Fund has also provided US$100,000 of assistance to eligible CAP-partner credit union member farmers in the form of partial loan reimbursements, as well as a $50,000 grant to a Ukrainian NGO working to support refugees in the Vinnytsia region of western Ukraine.
To donate to the Ukrainian Credit Union Displacement Fund, click here.
