10 Years
FAQ • Contact •

Home > News About > Network > 2012 > February
News About
Network
Members
Microinsurance
Recent Publications
Network
Microinsurance
Network Resources
_1

Microinsurance debate: Climate change and microinsurance

The Microinsurance Network invites you to join the “Microinsurance debate: Climate change and microinsurance", which is an online discussion that will focus on the potential role of microinsurance in dealing with climate change as a long-term challenge and its impact on low-income people.

The discussion will be moderated by Roland Steinmann, who authored the recently published discussion paper "Climate Change: A Microinsurance Perspective". We invite you to read the paper, which will be used as the basis for the discussion.

The discussion will take place on LinkedIn from Tuesday 6 March to Thursday 8 March 2012, between 12h00 and 19h00 CET and each day will address the following question:

Day 1 (Tuesday 6 March 2012) – Implications?
How will climate change influence the microinsurance sector? From a microinsurance perspective, does a changing climate present a business opportunity or pose additional hurdles when designing and implementing valuable and sustainable products for large portions of the target population?

Day 2 (Wednesday 7 March 2012) – Adaptation?
Is microinsurance, especially weather-related, a valuable instrument for adaptation to climate change? In theory, microinsurance could be designed with a range of objectives in mind, such as 1) an alternative to disaster relief programmes; 2) an instrument to facilitate economic development; iii) a tool to protect investments that are adapted to a changing climate. Which function is microinsurance best suited to and in which context will it be most relevant in relation to climate change?

Day 3 (Thursday 8 March 2012) – Risks?
Could weather-related microinsurance do more harm than good, especially when subsidies come into play? And if so, how should we address it? What are the fundamental risks and principles to follow when designing weather-related microinsurance products?

To take part or just follow the discussion, please join the LinkedIn group: The International Microinsurance Conference - Experts and Feedback Group.

What is the Microinsurance debate? It is discussion forum organised on LinkedIn by the Microinsurance Network, which aims to increase discussion among the microinsurance community with the objective to advance learnings.

For more information, please contact the Network's secretariat

........

Comment sent by Ajay Kumar

Microinsurance is strong tool to help poor people. If any natural disaster will come, it will affect most poor people. It is therefore important to make good and reasonable pricing of products for poor people so it can be helpful to protect them. It will also be important that PPP (public private partnership) make effective microinsurance programmes.

Microinsurance Awareness Season - Get involved!

10 years ago in March 2002, 16 experts sat down to form what is now known as the Microinsurance Network. Today, it is a global multi-stakeholder platform that promotes the development of good-value insurance services for low-income persons and in order to celebrate this, the Network is organising a Microinsurance Awareness Season.

The Microinsurance Awareness Season is a three month period from March until June 2012, during which we encourage you to organise an awareness raising event with colleagues, partners, neighbours, relatives, classmates or whoever you like, to discuss microinsurance.

An event can be anything from a coffee with a colleague, to a 1985-style Live Aid concert. It is completely up to you! All that is asked of you, is to send a photo of the participants with a short sentence about what it was and where to the Network. The best photos will be selected and added to the Network’s social media pages.

Click here for more information

Microinsurance film and discussion - Everything depends on you

The Microinsurance Network and Appui au Développement Autonome (ADA), in partnership with the Micro Insurance Academy, the Chambre de Commerce and the Association des Compagnies d’Assurances (ACA), are organising on Monday 12 March 2012 at 18h45 an educational evening on microinsurance at the CarréRotondes in Luxembourg.

Sab Tujhse HaiThe evening will focus on the importance of informing low-income populations on the role insurance can play in helping them deal with life’s challenges. A Bollywood educational movie called Sab Tujhse Hai (Everything depends on you) will be followed by a Q&A session with Ralf Radermacher, the person who developed the concept for the movie.

More information on the programme for the evening and film can be found here.

Click here to register

2012 Research Conference on Microinsurance

The aim of the 2012 Research Conference on Microinsurance, which will take place between 11 - 13 April 2012 in the Netherlands at the University of Twente, is two-fold.

First of all its objective is to assess the state of microinsurance research and to provide a platform for further in-depth academic discussions, as a complement and follow-up to the International Microinsurance Conferences. The second objective is to create a dialogue between researchers from different geographical regions and the variety of research disciplines.

The organisers have announced that Jerry Skees (University of Kentucky), Craig Churchill (ILO’s Microinsurance Innovation Facility), Xavier Giné (World Bank) and Shawn Cole (Harvard Business School) will all be speaking at the conference. For a more detailed agenda, click here.

For all additional information, visit the conference website

What are your three aspirations for microinsurance in 2012?

Kicking off the 10 year anniversary celebrations is one of the Three Big Questions. Throughout the year we will ask you three questions regarding your personal perceptions of microinsurance.

Read the "My Three Aspirations for Microinsurance in 2012" by Véronique Faber, Microinsurance Network coordinator.

Tell us your ideas and hopes for microinsurance by adding your comments below!

........

Denis Garand from Denis Garand Consulting wrote:

My three aspirations for microinsurance in 2012 are

1) Greater development of local capacity in each country. The best results for microinsurance is to have skilled people in each country that have the knowledge and experience to help expand access to insurance.

2) A greater development of health insurance truly covering people on a sound basis (has not been really done in any country) That is having loss prevention function to help people reduce their real morbidity (This is a rare function even in regular insurance companies), providing real access with quality and efficient services. (Again rarely do we see medical schemes managed to ensure efficient and effective services)

3) A greater use of Key Performance indicators. In my experience, this would be the first thing I would do for any organization that I would visit. This would help focus on the priorities of areas that can be improved.
This is an essential management tool. Having the ability to compare to others also helps management of microinsurance plans to look at how they can improve their effectiveness.

While these may not all be achieved in 2012, taking steps to get there will have a long lasting impact on increasing access to insurance.

.......

F.X. Hay from Macif wrote:

Microinsurance definition has been quite an exciting debate carrying a lot of hopes.

I wish simply that this 10th anniversary comes with a vivid definition, supported by 3 commitments to serve the masses with social responsibility.

This call could for example involve engage ourselves in :

1- Knowing our customers and their real insurance needs in order to avoid selling useless covers, providing counselling before selling, ensuring that our customers understand the product, its cost and its benefits and the way they are distributed,

2- Making efforts to involve members in preventive behaviours and assessing the social impacts of our role

3- Developing our social responsibility in the financials sharing along the microinsurance value chain from the insured till the shareholder (s).

.......

Gaby Ramm, independent consultant wishes for:

1) Greater development of local microinsurance capacity (as mentioned by Denis)

2) Constructive Network strategy development process - ensuring the ownership of its members and overcoming the differences between the \"core group\" of Network members and the \"satellites\" of not very active members

3) Find options for approaching individual clients with the same client value information and awareness as group products that are sold by trustworthy organisations in the vicinity of the customers.

Microinsurance Network registration is open for 2012!

Registration for 2012 is now open. Join the Network and be a part of a global multi-stakeholder platform that promotes the development of good-value insurance services for low-income persons through the sharing of lessons learnt and working together.

As member of the Network you will have the possibility to:

  • Influence good practices and focus on specific activities;
  • Enrich and share your knowledge within the Working Groups;
  • Engage with a global community of leading microinsurance experts.

For more details on how to become and the value of being a member, please consult the Become a member page. 

To join the Network, please fill out the Member Application Form