Responsabilidades educativas y financieras de la S.A.T.E.C. en Guadeloupe

Abstract

SATEC (Société d’Assistance Technique et de Crédit Social d’Outre-Mer) is a French organization with two main purposes: supervised credit and education in the French overseas territories. The question arises whether there is any conflict in carrying out these two types of functions simultaneously. A study was carried out in two agencies at Guadeloupe (French West Indies) with the purpose of investigating the effects of combining financial and educational responsibilities in an institution. It was found that SATEC’s financial aid combined with technical assistance favors the adoption of recommended agricultural practices by the borrowers and this produces certain social and cultural change in the people. Nevertheless, it is obvious that the educational role of the monitor is limited by the financial responsibilities assigned to him. The result of this duality of functions is a good use of credit, but also limitations on the development of an educational program in the community