On Friday March 22nd, Youghal Credit Union Manager, Mr BarryTreacy, together with Mr Colm Geary, also from the Credit Union, delivered a most informative presentation to all our Transition Year students. Mr Treacy volunteered for two weeks with other Credit Unions in Sierra Leone, West Africa, to help provide low interest loans to the people there, so they could make a living for themselves. He spoke of the life expectancy in Sierra Leone being a mere 51 years while Adult Literacy is only 43%.Both TB & Malaria levels are high & due to poor road conditions, it takes two hours to drive a ten mile journey. In the Credit Union buildings, light is dó fím, that they use lamps to see the documentation. They endeavour to promote self-sufficiency. He gave an example of a lady who took out a loan to buy five bananas. She made a profit in selling them & gradually increased her business to the extent that she now has her own stall & thereby can afford to send her children to school.
The students were very interested in what Mr Treacy had to say & asked him questions at the end. We are very grateful to Mr Treacy & Mr Geary for giving of their time on a busy Friday morning, to deliver such a thought-provoking talk to our students. Mile Buíochas
