Former SDLP leader John Hume is to receive an award from the World Council of Credit Unions for his work in promoting the credit union movement.
The Nobel Peace Prize winner will receive the "distinguished service award" from the international body in July when it holds its conference in Dublin.
The World Council of Credit Unions represents 43,147 credit unions in 91 countries, serving more than 136 million people.
Mr Hume first heard of the award when he was contacted by The Irish Times yesterday.
He said he was very honoured to receive the award and to have been involved in the building of the credit union movement in Ireland.
"Everyone knows the outstanding work that the credit union movement has been doing for people and for communities," he said.
Mr Hume (69) was just 23 when he and some friends founded the Derry Credit Union - the first credit union in Northern Ireland - with less than £10.
He said he got involved in the credit union because working-class people could not get loans and had to rely on pawn shops and loan sharks when they got into financial difficulty.
Mr Hume became president of the Irish League of Credit Unions when he was 27 and is the only life director of the league's board. He said credit unions had an important humanitarian role, laying the foundations of new societies.
The 2006 World Credit Union Conference will be held in Dublin from July 27th to July 30th.
