Desjardins, proud partner of the Carrefour d'affaires au féminin

This event is organized by the Réseau des femmes d'affaires marocaines du Canada

Montréal, May 21, 2009 – Desjardins Group is proud to announce its participation in the 4th edition of the Carrefour d'affaires au féminin, as title sponsor. This event, organized by the network of Moroccan business women in Canada (réseau des femmes d'affaires marocaines du Canada), brings together a panel of business women from various locations around the globe to meet with their peers from Québec.

Activities are staged to take place from May 25 to 27, and will include several conferences, including one given by Hélène Bégin, Senior Economist with Desjardins Group, who will speak about the current economic situation.

Desjardins is very involved in cultural communities and is working, in part through its contribution to this event, to emphasize the importance of multi-ethnicity within business relations.

"Desjardins sets itself apart by the welcome it offers to new immigrants, which can be seen in Carrefour Desjardins in Montréal. Our team of professionals has the ability to serve our clientele in ten languages, while our resources are drawn from a variety of countries. We are just really excited by diversity! That is why we jumped at the chance to take part in these meetings held by business women from all walks of life," explains Guylaine Legault, Vice-President of Carrefour Desjardins and honorary president for the event.

For Desjardins Group, which was given a prize for their efforts to promote diversity by the African Business Network on May 7, women clearly have an important role to play in our society.

In fact, in 2008, Desjardins Group boasted more than 30,000 female employees, including 1,395 managers, 159 senior executives and close to one hundred caisse general managers. During this same year, 62% of executives and 28% of senior executives appointed within Desjardins Group were women.

About Desjardins Group

Desjardins Group is the largest cooperative financial group in Canada, with overall assets of close to $160 billion, as at March 31, 2009. It comprises a network of caisses, credit unions and business centres in Québec and Ontario, and some twenty subsidiary companies in life and general insurance, securities brokerage, venture capital and asset management, many of which are active across the country. Drawing on the expertise of its 42,000 employees and the commitment of its 6,300 elected officers, Desjardins offers its 5.8 million individual and corporate members and clients a full range of financial products and services. Its physical distribution network is complemented by leading-edge virtual access methods. To find out more, consult www.desjardins.com.

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Source (for journalists only):
Caroline Phémius
Advisor, Information and Media Relations
514-281-7000 or 1-866-866-7000, ext. 7262