Consistent with its plans reported by MicroCapital in March, Manulife Philippines, a subsidiary of Canada-based Manulife Financial, has launched a microinsurance product that provides life and accident protection to low-income Filipinos. Continue Reading »

The Visayan Daily Star, an online newspaper, recently reported that microinsurance companies in the Philippines are lobbying the national government to exempt microinsurance from taxes [1]. Continue Reading »

In association with its 15 partner microfinance institutions (MFIs), Indian social venture firm Dia Vikas Capital, a subsidiary of nonprofit Opportunity International Australia, will distribute a micro-pension scheme that was initiated by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) of the Indian government. The program, NPS-Lite, will encourage economically disadvantaged people to save money for when they are over age 60 [1]. The Indian government is reported to have committed to match NPS-Lite contributions up to INR 1,000 (USD 22) per client annually [1] [2]. Continue Reading »

Event Name: Global Insurance Conference

Event Date: June 1, 2011 to June 2, 2011

Event Location: Preston Auditorium, World Bank Headquarters, Washington, DC, USA Continue Reading »

Oxfam America, a subsidiary of UK-based relief agency Oxfam International, and the World Food Program (WFP), a unit of the United Nations (UN), have developed a crop insurance initiative that allows Ethiopian farmers to acquire microinsurance policies in return for either cash or labor, extending WFP’s existing food-and-cash-for-work program [1]. Continue Reading »

The Asian Development Bank (ADB), a multilateral financial institution operating across Asia, recently convened a meeting of its Board of Governors during which a panel of experts reiterated the significance of microinsurance in protecting poor populations from economic shocks. Continue Reading »

World Vision Tanzania, a branch of US-based, Christian relief organization World Vision, in partnership with MicroEnsure, a subsidiary of US-based microfinance network Opportunity International, has launched a pilot scheme to provide small-scale farmers in Tanzania with agricultural loans bundled with weather index insurance.

The Microinsurance Network, a member-based organization that works to advance insurance in poor countries, recently published a summary of an online discussion on public-private partnerships (PPPs) addressing themes including the role of governments in enabling PPPs, the merits and drawbacks of subsidizing the private sector, how to define success in microinsurance PPPs and current gaps in consumer protection and institutional capacity. Continue Reading »

Event Name: 5th Asian Conference on Microinsurance

Event Date: July 11 – July 12, 2011

Event Location: Jakarta, Indonesia Continue Reading »

The Microinsurance Network, which was initially established as the CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor) Working Group on Microinsurance in 2002, recently launched its “Stocktaking Initiative: Ongoing Impact Assessments on Microinsurance” website. An initiative of the network’s Impact Working Group, the Stocktaking Initiative aims to serve as an information clearinghouse on impact assessments of microinsurance around the world. Continue Reading »

Munich Re Foundation, a German grant-making foundation, has issued a call for proposals for its seventh annual microinsurance conference, which will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, November 8 to November 10, 2011. Continue Reading »

Banco de Desarrollo Rural Sociedad Anonima (Banrural), a commercial bank in Guatemala that operates mostly in rural areas, and Aseguradora Rural, Banrural’s insurance affiliate, recently hired US-based EA Consultants to assist with the development of a health insurance product to cover the immediate health needs of low-income clients. Continue Reading »

Mr Somen Saha, senior lecturer at the Indian Institute of Public Health in the state of Gujarat, and Ms Marcia Metcalfe, director of microfinance and health protection at California-based international development nonprofit Freedom from Hunger, recently co-authored an article that was published on the website of US-based newspaper The Wall Street Journal wherein they argue for the integration of health care with microfinance in India. Continue Reading »

The MicroInsurance Centre, a for-profit initiative of the MicroSave technical assistance company, recently announced the launch of the Microinsurance Learning and Knowledge (MILK) Project, supported by a USD 2 million grant from the US-based Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Continue Reading »

Event Name: International Microinsurance Conference – Learning Sessions

Event Date: June 30, 2011

Event Time: 9:00 am to 5:30 pm

Event Location: Staple Inn Hall, High Holborn, London, United Kingdom Continue Reading »

The Insurance Commission (IC) of the Philippines, an organization that was established in 1949 and mandated by law to regulate and supervise the country’s insurance industry, recently stated that it expects 20 percent of the population of the Philippines to be insured by the end of 2011 as a result of more insurance companies offering microinsurance to people with low incomes. Continue Reading »

Kenya Reinsurance Company, an organization based in Kenya that provides reinsurance and other financial services to insurance companies in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, recently reported a 16 percent increase in profit from 2009 to 2010 as a result of growth in premium revenue and investment portfolio gains. Continue Reading »

Mobile Telecommunications Network (MTN) Ghana, a division of the multinational MTN telecommunications group of South Africa, recently partnered with Hollard Insurance, a private insurance provider based in South Africa; Mobile Financial Services (MFS) Africa, a mobile payments organization based in South Africa; and MicroEnsure, a UK-based insurance intermediary owned by US-based nonprofit Opportunity International, to pilot a life insurance product called mi-Life [1] [2]. Continue Reading »