Home » About Oikocredit » Governance

Our governance

Oikocredit is a cooperative uniting individuals and organisations across the world to empower people with low incomes and their communities. Our transparent, inclusive governance reflects our values and integrity, with a global network of professionals, volunteers and members driving our success.

Collaboration at every level

The cooperative structure

Oikocredit operates as a cooperative. We make decisions collectively with the input of our members. Our members are churches, selected partners, support associations and other like-minded organisations.

Our central office is in Amersfoort, the Netherlands. We also have regional offices across Europe, Africa, Asia, Central and South America and the Caribbean. Staffed by local experts, these offices allow us to work directly with our members, investors, and partners, ensuring that our approach is tailored to the unique needs of each community for maximum impact.

Accountable leadership

Our governance bodies

Oikocredit operates under a two-tier governance model. The Supervisory Board oversees the organisation and the Managing Board, while the Executive Committee manages day-to-day operations. Together with the Members’ Council, these bodies ensure we meet our mission and maintain accountability across all activities.

 

 

General Meeting

The General Meeting of Members is the highest governance body of the cooperative and is responsible for key decisions such as the approval of the annual accounts, the distribution of dividends, and the appointment of Supervisory Board members and the external auditor.

Supervisory Board

The Supervisory Board supervises Oikocredit’s overall activities and the work of the Managing Board. With representation from various continents and areas of expertise, the board ensures balance and inclusivity in all decisions

Managing board & Executive Committee

Oikocredit has a governance structure with a Managing Board consisting of statutory directors and an Executive Committee consisting of the Managing Board members and three non-statutory directors. Our Executive Committee is responsible for the daily management of Oikocredit and handles all key decision-making to drive our operations.

Member’s Council

The Members’ Council represents Oikocredit’s cooperative members. These include churches, our support associations and other like-minded organisations. Acting as an advisory group, the Members’ Council ensures the cooperative remains aligned with the interests of its diverse membership.

Support associations (SAs)

Our support associations across Europe are instrumental in Oikocredit’s work. Support associations connect local communities with Oikocredit through workshops, talks and events and raise awareness on issues like financial inequality and climate resilience. As members of Oikocredit, support associations provide unique platforms for members and investors to influence and shape the cooperative and encourage support for our mission.

Rebecca Wolfer
Dr. Maximilian Held
David Díaz de Quijano i Barbero

International Foundation

Oikocredit

The Oikocredit International Foundation mobilises and deploys grant funding to support   people and their communities in an innovative and sustainable way. The foundation joins forces with other development actors to mobilise financial resources and achieve impact at scale through capacity building work. Additionally, the foundation supports small and new initiatives with limited resources to grow and with high social and environmental impact potential for their communities.

Read the most recent ISUP Annual Report

Oikocredit Foundation Germany

The Oikocredit Foundation Germany is a non-profit foundation, established by Oikocredit support associations in Germany. It provides financial backing to enhance social impact. The foundation’s assets are directly invested with Oikocredit. Donations received, along with the income from these investments, are used to fund training, advice, and technical support for
Oikocredit’s trusted local partners.