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By Julia Luscombe
“Support Sinincay – exchange your dollars for UDIS!” This was the mantra of the staff of Fundación Pachamama and the Integral Savings and Credit Cooperative at Sinincay High School’s open house on February 17th. Sinincay, a community just outside of Cuenca, Ecuador, is one of the three locales where Fundación Pachamama is working to implement a complementary currency system. By using “UDIS” rather than dollars, the hope is that consumers in Sinincay will give preference to local businesses rather than making purchases in big cities or importing goods from abroad.
At the high school’s open house, local residents used UDIS for the first time. By exchanging dollars for UDIS, they were able to familiarize themselves with the currency and get a free soda when they paid for their lunch in UDIS. “This is a great project that will really help strengthen our community here in Sinincay, since more money will stay in the community,” said Orlando Gordillo, a resident who returned to his hometown after working in the U.S. to expand the Asador Doña Laurita – he and his wife’s local restaurant that is well-known for serving up hefty plates of locally-produced chicken.
The restaurant has agreed to accept UDIS. They were among the first to join Integral’s Network of Solidarity Exchange (Red de Intercambio Solidario Integral), along with nine other businesses. Residents of Sinincay will now be able to take out credits in UDIS from the cooperative at a lower interest rate. They will then be able to spend their UDIS at the growing number of local businesses that accept UDIS.
Fundación Pachamama has provided funding and technical support to this initiative – interviewing local businesses, creating promotional videos, and working with the Cooperative to plan informational events and an accounting mechanism for the system. After frequent meetings with Fundación Pachamama, the Central Bank of Ecuador recently agreed to collaborate in the supervision of the project.
The project doesn’t end with the circulation of a complementary currency, however. Fundación Pachamama and Integral Cooperative staff are working on workshops and other initiatives that will build more of a sense of community among local businesses in Sinincay, as well as share valuable skills relevant to small businesses.
The two other complementary currency systems in San Joaquin, near Cuenca, and in San Miguel de Sigchos, outside of Quito, are expected to launch in the coming month.
