Allianz: Microinsurance band aid
The Financial, 20 October 2008
Bajaj Allianz and CARE India have decided to diversify their microinsurance portfolio in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and deliver their own brand of micro health insurance to rural communities in the area.
Drawing on their existing microinsurance experience with local partner organizations, CARE and Bajaj Allianz opted for insurance schemes run and controlled by local community organizations. In such a model, the community, usually comprising of several villages, pools the premium and administers its use. Each community takes full control of governance and management of the mutual.
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Redcamif: Microseguros: Nueva meta para las microfinanzas
Date: 3 - 4 December 2009 / Place: Panamá City
The Central American Network of Microfinance REDCAMIF is organising a regional conference in Panama called "MICROSEGUROS: NUEVA META PARA LAS MICROFINANZAS" (Microinsurance: New goal for microfinance). Redcamif, whose mission is to promote the microfinance industry and its impact on economic and social development in Central America, hopes this conference will help develop a sustainable market for microinsurance in Central America.
Panel I: Products
Panel II: Marketing
Panel III: Customer Demand
Panel IV: The MFI as a channel for the masses
Panel V: Information Systems
Click here for more details
Boost to Microinsurance in China: Two progress reports
The insurance regulator in China has boosted the development of microinsurance, especially in rural areas, to help farmers and low-income households to better manage their risks. One important partner in reaching these populations are the Chines insurance companies.
Two key Chinese insurance companies, China Life and PICC, have compiled progress reports and explain in more detail how they managed to reach so many people in such a short time and where their focus lies.
Download the report: China Life (pdf) and PICC (pdf)
Pakistan wants to replicate India’s health insurance
The Economic Times, 8 October 2009
The Indo-Pak dialogue may not be moving anywhere at this stage, but it’s a different story when it comes to social schemes for the poor. Pakistan, sources said, has expressed an interest in replicating India’s health insurance scheme for the poor.
The Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana, an insurance cover for BPL (below poverty line) families implemented by the Centre, state and insurance companies, has caught the attention of Islamabad, which is keen on studying the scheme that at present covers BPL families in 18 states across India.
Through the World Bank, Indian and Pakistani officials recently had a video conference between Delhi and Islamabad to discuss the project. Pakistan’s health services has even expressed an interest in sending a delegation to India to study the scheme which covers 64 lakh people in India and is targeted at the unorganised sector. “Pakistan has shown a lot of interest,’’ sources said.
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Angul Co-op Bank grows while adopting new insurance scheme
Business Standard, 7 October 2009
Angul United Central Cooperative Bank (AUCCB), one of the largest cooperative banks in Bengal, has posted 14.25 per cent growth in its total business.
The bank has adopted a new insurance scheme called Universal Health Insurance Scheme for the BPL (below poverty line) card holders through a tie up with the National Insurance Company on referral basis.
The AUCCB is the first bank adopting this scheme meant for the BPL card holders, Bibhudendhu Pattnaik, chairman of AUCCB claimed.
Besides, the bank has also adopted a Micro Insurance Scheme on a referral basis through tie-up with ICICI Prudential. This scheme would cover all the 2.60 lakh Kisan credit card holders. The scheme offers life insurance to the Kisan credit card holders on a nominal payment of Rs 50 per year with the sum assured being Rs 50,000. AUCCB whose main thrust is on crop loans has decided to offer loans to other sectors except commercial housing. A special housing scheme for corporate and government employees is being implemented and emphasis is also being given on small and medium sector lending, said Pattnaik.
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Zurich Financial Says Microinsurance Sales to Poor to Rise 50%
Bloomberg.com, 5 October 2009
Zurich Financial Services AG, Switzerland’s largest insurer, said it expects to increase sales in developing nations of policies covering death, illness and natural disasters by 50 percent this year as it develops more sales channels.
Coverage provided to low-income households in China, Mexico, Bolivia, Venezuela, South Africa, Indonesia and Jordan, will be boosted by local distribution agreements, Brandon Mathews, head of the Zurich-based insurer’s microsinsurance unit, said in an interview in Zurich on Sept. 30. “Policies this year currently cover around 1.5 million microinsurance customers in developing nations,” he said.
Four billion poor people around the world living on less than $2 per day represent an annual market for insurance services worth as much as $90 billion, according to research company Datamonitor Plc. Zurich is competing for a slice of this market with insurers including Allianz SE, Munich Re and Swiss Reinsurance Co.
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Micro Insurance: A Safety Net With Too Many Holes?
Knowledge@Wharton, 30 September 2009
Developing and developed countries may have a lot more in common these days than many people think. Take health care. As the U.S. Congress continues to debate President Obama's controversial national health care plan, an innovative program similarly aiming to improve the lives of the poor is being launched on the other side of the globe in Bangladesh.
As part of a $34 million grant-giving facility launched last year by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the International Labor Organization (ILO), the Bangladeshi pilot is rolling out a micro insurance product specially tailored to the country's low-income rural residents, most of whom live on less than $2 a day. Designed for poor people who are not served by typical social or commercial insurance schemes, microinsurance -- risk-sharing products characterized by low premiums and coverage limits -- generally covers everything from life and health care to weather, property, agriculture, livestock and catastrophe.
Read full article for details of product, a general overview of microinsurance and where it differs from micro-credit.
Health insurance, the preventative way
The Seattle Times, 23rd September 2009
 Pr-Mujer, an organization that funds microcredit cooperatives in Latin America, also provides women's health screenings, using a special van retrofitted with medical consultation rooms and staffed by a nurse and doctor.
The vans travel into remote parts of southern Peru, combining financial help with preventative health care and education.
It's based on a simple fact that people who are poor tend to get sick, and people who are sick easily become poor, or deeper in debt. Rick Beckett, CEO of Global Partnerships, gave the example of Pro Mujer's work at a talk last night about the future of microfinance.
As is well known, health insurance is a very complicated, but this simple and effective preventative measure is one way microinsurance companies could use to reduce their risks.
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