During the State of the Movement Address at the 2024 World Credit Union Conference, Elissa McCarter LaBorde, President and CEO of the World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU), unveiled an ambitious new vision to expand the credit union’s reach from 400 million to one billion people. The goal is for at least 50% (500 million) of the new members to be women. McCarter LaBorde emphasized the importance of gender equity and equality for the future of the credit union movement and urged others to join in making this vision a reality.
The WOCCU Board of Directors recently approved this new goal, along with a commitment to seeing 50% of credit union leaders being women as well. This announcement follows an initiative by the Global Women’s Leadership Network, which collected credit union gender data and insights as part of its 15-year anniversary.
McCarter LaBorde also urged credit union representatives from around the world to come together as a unified movement while embracing innovation to achieve the new membership goal. She highlighted the increasing need for innovation at an unprecedented pace and the importance of reaching out to young people to address an aging membership.
