Découvrez la microfinance en action! — Concours jefaismapart.coop
Is microfinance a solution for sustainable development in developing countries?
DID is pleased to announce that some 300 young people from across Canada, ages 18 to 30, entered the second DoingMyPart.Coop Youth Contest, held September 20 to November 9, 2007.
Among the participants, 12 young people distinguished themselves with the exceptional quality of the essays that they submitted in answer to the contest question: Is microfinance a solution for sustainable development in developing countries?.
The 12 winners are listed below in alphabetical order. You can select a name to read a text.
| Winner | City/Province | Member of Caisse Desjardins1 |
|---|---|---|
| Charles Bélanger | Quebec City (Québec) | Caisse Desjardins de Cap-Rouge (Québec) |
| Misha Benjamin | Montreal (Québec) | n/a |
| Annie Bérubé | Quebec City (Québec) | Caisse Desjardins de Saint-Rodrigue (Québec) |
| Marie-Pierre Bérubé | Becancour (Québec) | Caisse Desjardins du Canton d’aston (Saint-Léonard-d'Aston) |
| Sara Blenkhorn | West Vancouver (British Columbia) | n/a |
| Maxime Carré | St-Romuald (Québec) | Caisse Desjardins de Saint-Romuald (Lévis) |
| Anaar Kara | Torbay (Newfoundland) | n/a |
| Sarah Kelly | Trois-Pistoles (Quebec) | Caisse Desjardins de l'héritage des Basques (Trois-Pistoles) |
| Mike Lafleur | Calgary (Alberta) | n/a |
| Sarah Messerli | Montreal (Quebec) | Caisse Desjardins d'Argenteuil (Lachute) |
| Gregg Newson | London (Ontario) | n/a |
| Natalie Rouskov | Mississauga (Ontario) | n/a |
Note 1: Membership in a Desjardins institution was not a contest eligibility criteria.
To read the press release. Discover the 2 grand prize winners!
Grand prize
Two awareness tours in a developing country where Développement international Desjardins (DID) is active. Destination : Tanzania (East Africa).
Total value of $15,000
A Prize For Each Winner
Each of the 12 winners will receive the following prizes, valued at $150, offered by the Fédération des coopératives québécoises en milieu scolaire:
- A $50 gift certificate redeemable at any COOPSCO store
- A practical guide on the destination chosen for the grand prize
- A book on the subject of microfinance
- A warm COOPSCO blanket.
“During my stay in Paraguay, I visited financial cooperatives in Asunción that offer basic financial services in their local community. I learned about microfinance and the different needs in the various neighbourhoods where the institutions are located, and how microfinance benefits the poor.
The people we encountered in the financial cooperatives had very good things to say about Desjardins, because DID experts were able to adapt their expertise to the situation in Paraguay and counted on local skills to ensure the sustainable growth of the microfinance institutions.
In Paraguay, the cooperatives have an important role in society and are part of daily life for thousands of people.”
Marie-Hélène Dufour, grand prize winner
1st annual DID DoingMyPart.Coop contest
The Doingmypart.coop contest is organized in collaboration with our partners:
Conditions: Participants must be Canadian citizens and between the age of 18 and 30 when they register for the contest. The contest ends November 9, 2007. The two grand prize winners and ten finalists will be announced during International Development Week in February 2008. For complete contest rules, click here.
© Développement international Desjardins, 2007