“Remittances to Latin America and the Caribbean in 2012: Differing Behavior Across Subregions;” by Maria Luisa Hayem; published by the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF); 2013; 27 pages; available at http://www5.iadb.org/mif/HOME/Knowledge/tabid/426/idPublication/78709/language/en-US/Default.aspx

This report from the US-based Multilateral Investment Fund provides an analysis of remittances received across national borders by people in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). Continue Reading »

“Rural Finance in Loas: GIZ Experience in Remote Rural Areas;” by Klaus Prochaska, Dennis Fischer, Philipp Hauger, Tony Deary; published by Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ); December 2012; 40 pages; available at: http://www.microfinancegateway.org/gm/document-1.9.61072/Rural_Finance_in%20Laos_Paper_GIZ_2012.pdf

This report presents an analysis of the “Microfinance in Rural Areas – Access to Finance for the Poor” project, which is operated by Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), an agency of the German Government, in partnership with the Bank of Lao, the central bank of Laos. Continue Reading »

Microinsurance providers in India have recently implemented strategies such as street plays and handwritten postcards in local languages to increase policy renewals. Continue Reading »

Ghana Association of Microfinance Companies (GAMC), an association with 560 member microfinance institutions (MFIs), and Star Microinsurance Services Limited, a Ghana-based insurance provider that serves approximately 550,000 clients, recently signed a memorandum of understanding regarding the provision of microinsurance products to clients of various MFIs. Continue Reading »

Mutual Benefit Assurance Plc, a Nigeria-based provider of insurance and other financial services, recently announced that it has established a microfinance bank (MFB) to promote its microinsurance offerings, which carry premiums as low as NGN 50 (USD 0.30) per three day period covering up to NGN 100,000 (USD 600) in hospital expenses and in the event of loss of life. Continue Reading »

In July 2012, Old Mutual Kenya (OMK), a Nairobi-based investment subsidiary of UK-based Old Mutual Group, launched i-Invest, a platform that offers investment products that can be purchased via M-Pesa, a service of a Kenya-based mobile operator Safaricom. Continue Reading »

“Microfinance Institution Tier Definitions;” published by MicroRate; April 2013; 2 pages; available at http://www.microrate.com/media/downloads/2013/04/MicroRate-White-paper-Microfinance-Institution-Tier-Definitions.pdf

This report proposes a “tier system that defines microfinance institution [MFI] peer groups by institutional maturity to provide a foundation for industry analysis and informed dialogue.” Continue Reading »

Nationwide Microbank, a microfinance institution (MFI) in Papua New Guinea, recently launched MiLife, a mobile microinsurance product covering the life of low-income married couples. Continue Reading »

By Michal Matul, Aparna Dalal, Ombeline De Bock and Wouler Gelade, published by Microinsurance Innovation Facility, February 2013, 31 pages, available at: http://www.ilo.org/public/english/employment/mifacility/download/mpaper20_buy.pdf

This paper published by the Microinsurance Innovation Facility, a Switzerland-based initiative of the UN’s International Labour Organization, examines the “determinants of demand” for microinsurance products in the developing world and looks at why, despite its potential to mitigate risk, the demand for microinsurance is low. Continue Reading »

Employers in Thailand are now reportedly required to buy THB 1,047 (USD 36) worth of health insurance each for migrant worker they employ who is in the process of entering, or ineligible for, Thailand’s social security system. Continue Reading »

The National Insurance Commission (NIC), Ghana’s regulatory authority for the industry, reportedly has instituted a new regulatory framework  that is intended to promote the microinsurance sector. Continue Reading »

By Jan Meissner; published by Ghana’s National Insurance Commission (NIC) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ); 2013; 243 pages; available at: http://www.microfinancegateway.org/gm/document-1.9.61118/Promoting%20Microinsurance%20in%20Ghana_Full%20Book.pdf

This book analyzes potential ways to enhance the development of the microinsurance sector in Ghana, providing an overview of inclusive financial market development in the country as well as a series of recommended best practices for microinsurance development. Continue Reading »

Opportunity International, a US-based development nonprofit, and its subsidiary MicroEnsure, a UK-based nonprofit microinsurance intermediary, have announced the launch in Malawi of a savings-linked education insurance product called EduSave.  Continue Reading »

“A Simple Poverty Scorecard for Nicaragua;” by Mark Schreiner; January 2013; 189 pages; available at http://www.microfinance.com/English/Papers/Scoring_Poverty_Nicaragua_2009_EN.pdf

This document introduces an “easy-to-use” poverty scorecard based on household expenditure data from Nicaragua’s 2009 Living Standards Measurement Survey. Continue Reading »

MicroEnsure, a UK-based nonprofit microinsurance intermediary, has partnered with Bankers Assurance Corporation, a Filipino for-profit insurance company, and MI Central Corporation, a Filipino marketing and distribution company, to roll out a retail microinsurance product called Triple 10 in the Philippines.  Continue Reading »

Ears Earth Environment Monitoring Limited, a subsidiary of the Netherlands-based remote sensing company Ears Holding, is offering its Food Early Solutions for Africa (FESA) microinsurance system free of charge to microinsurance providers. Continue Reading »

By Craig Churchill, Aparna Dalal and Josh Ling; published by International Labour Organization, Microinsurance Innovation Facility; 2013; 8 pages; available at: http://www.ilo.org/public/english/employment/mifacility/download/brnote15_en.pdf

This paper examines the challenges faced by microfinance institutions (MFIs) that provide microinsurance products to low-income individuals and businesses. Continue Reading »

A study by Ikapadata, a South Africa-based data collection company, indicates that 20 percent of South Africans with low incomes have formal health insurance while 66 percent have no formal insurance at all, excluding those who receive coverage from their employers.  Continue Reading »