Risk transfer through microinsurance: case study from Odisha on protecting and involving people from designing to implementation, monitoring and evaluation

Can humanitarian action lead to financial inclusion? Can disaster victims design their own insurance programme? How? This case study addresses these questions. Non-availability of microinsurance options to the poor is an issue of financial exclusion. AIDMI pointed out to powerful governments and humanitarian agencies that disaster microinsurance can work and should be integrated in recovery programmes (between two disasters) and argue with giant insurance companies about market potential of disaster insurance in the region.

The opportunities for development of poor people are extremely restricted by different conditions like political, economic, living in disaster prone areas like coastal areas at risk of cyclones, floods and other climatic hazards such as the ones at Odisha in India. The poor and vulnerable families really require microinsurance that covers non-life components, especially shelter and livelihood. Single parties cannot do this effectively. A combination of insurance companies and non-government organisations with focus on effective facilitation and time-to-time follow up and involvement of clients from the beginning can produce this desired result. The objective of the presentation is to share a case study of a microinsurance product and how it protects and supports in the extreme event like 2013 Cyclone Phailin. There will also be lessons for the replication of this experience and how any product can build the impact through involvement of crisis affected people from designing to claim submission. The presentation will also address how such coping mechanisms can involve local communities when designing, implementing, monitoring and evaluating.