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We are glad to present you with the 4th edition of Micro Insurance Voices, the newsletter of the Micro Insurance Academy! Over the past four months, the MIA has been busy in a variety of research, training, implementation and advocacy projects. In this issue of Voices we bring you updates on...
We are also pleased to inform you of our conversation with HRH Princess Maxima of the Netherlands, UN Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development on her visit to New Delhi, and the recent awards bestowed upon the MIA's Founding Chairman, Prof. David Dror. We hope this issue of Voices will help keep you updated about our activities, and we look forward to staying in touch. Best regards, The MIA team The MIA and Save the Children complete the preparatory steps to introduce CBHI schemes in Nepal - Preliminary Report released!
The Preliminary Report was presented in Kathmandu, Nepal, at a high-profile workshop held on the 16th and 17th of September 2009. The partner organizations(the MIA, Save the Children, Nirdhan, the Center for Microfinance and DEPROSC) led an enthusiastic group with participation from government agencies, international development organizations, local NGOs and foreign missions. Opening the workshop, the Minister of Health and Population of Nepal, Hon. Umakanta Chaudhary, stressed how micro health insurance (MHI) can effectively work as a complement to the healthcare services offered by the government of Nepal. The Chairman of Beema Samiti (The Nepal Insurance Board), Prof. Dr. Fatta Bahadur K.C., expressed the importance of Beema Samiti providing a suitable regulatory framework for the operation of microinsurance in Nepal. The MIA and Save the Children have already secured funding for Phase II of the project, which will focus on Insurance Education. Stay tuned for more update in coming editions of Micro Insurance Voices! Advisory Board for European Commission-funded international research consortium meets for first time in New Delhi
The Advisory Board is composed of experts in the fields of healthcare, microinsurance and development and was represented at the meeting by Prof. Rainer Sauerborn (Heidelberg University), Prof Ruth Koren (Tel Aviv University), Prof. Jacky Mathonnat (Université d'Auvergne), Dr. Michael Kent Ranson (World Health Organization) and Dr. Hengjin Dong (Heidelberg University). The Advisory Board members met for two days, followed by two days of discussion and planning by the consortium's Steering Committee, counting as its members the Micro Insurance Academy staff and representatives from both the two partner European universities (Erasmus University Rotterdam and University of Cologne) and the three local partner NGOs (Shramik Bharti, Nidan and BAIF). The full week of work offered a unique occasion for all of the project partners, internationally renowned academics, the MIA's Directors and Researchers, and the implementation partners with their invaluable knowledge of the local context, to gather together and plan all aspects of the project for the months ahead. At this early stage, the project will see local partners initiate the roll out of three new showcase Micro Health Insurance units (MIUs) in the northern Indian states of Bihar (Vaishali district) and Uttar Pradesh (Kanpur Dehat and Pratapgarh districts). In this multi-site coordinated effort, the parallel collection of data will allow first-in-its-kind scientifically rigorous monitoring and evaluation of the impact of Micro Health Insurance on communities and local healthcare systems. Ongoing Commitment to Insurance Education: MIA hosts 3rd Reinsurance School
The MIA successfully hosted the Reinsurance School for the third consecutive year. This unique training event - the first and only Reinsurance School for microinsurance units (MIUs) - took place at the Vishwa Yuvak Kendra in New Delhi from 16th-18th November, 2009, with support from MISEREOR and Deutscher Genossenschafts - und Raiffeisenverband (DGRV). The School offered a platform for participants from different microfinance units, insurance companies and government bodies to learn and exchange about reinsurance mechanisms. Knowledge and experience was provided by international experts in microinsurance from the reinsurance industry, NGO sector, and academia. The primary objective of the Reinsurance School is to provide trainees with a clear idea of the advantages of reinsurance for their MIUs, and the solutions to formulate demand for reinsurance within legal frameworks. The following sessions were held during the 3-day training event:
Throughout the workshop the speakers engaged the participants with mathematical pricing calculations, risk analysis, and educational games that demonstrated the importance of risk pooling. The workshop concluded with providing participants the opportunity to present individual queries to faculty members and receive expert feedback. The next Reinsurance School will take place in November 2010 - stay tuned for registration details! EPOS and MIA partner with GTZ to study employment-based Social Protection Consisting of both desk and field research in each country, the study will be managed by a Country Expert at each location and will include interviews with workers to evaluate their needs for risk management coverage. The data collected will be synthesized into a single report offering solutions to develop and implement microinsurance programs within the local companies. The two-month project will be finalized in January 2010 with a presentation to GTZ and its corporate partners. On 30 Nov - 1Dec 2009, the MIA hosted a project workshop in Delhi. The two-day event saw a seven-member team discuss and assess examples, trends, existing government initiatives and the options available to enterprise-based social microinsurance and pension initiatives. The MIA rolls out an awareness campaign on microinsurance in Orissa (India)
Facilitators were identified from the target communities and trained on how to use these awareness tools. During the awareness campaign, the trained facilitators conducted sessions among self help group (SHG) and joint liability group (JLG) members and their families about the need and importance of micro insurance. The target population consisted of 1000 members of SHGs and JLGs with total population reach of approximately 5000. Various awareness tools were used during the campaign such as the launch of a micro insurance songs CD, wall painting, posters, group/village meetings and street plays. The treasure pot game was also played in meetings followed by discussion on the need of insurance and risk pooling. Throughout the entire campaign, the MIA provided technical assistance, oversight and monitoring. The MIA also prepared road-maps for each facilitator to be used as a guide for training sessions. Community groups participated actively in the meetings and various awareness programmes. Many community members shared stories about their suffering and indebtedness due to health related problems and expressed that Niramaya Swastya Surakhya Panthi (the name picked by the community for their Micro Insurance Unit is an urgent need for themselves and their communities. Watch a video on the Orissa awareness campaign on the MIA's YouTube Channel! Micro Insurance Academy receives Royal attention!
As the United Nations Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development, the Princess demonstrates proven expertise in financial services for low-income populations. The Princess showed keen interest in the MIA's work and had a lively exchange with Prof. David Dror, MIA Chairman, and other senior MIA representatives. Year of awards: MIA's Chairman is acknowledged for his contribution to the field of Micro Insurance
This year's winners were announced in a ceremony organized by the Asia Insurance Review. During the annual ceremony, which brings together the most prominent personalities and innovative companies in the mainstream of insurance and reinsurance worldwide, Prof. Dror was praised for his "tremendous, innovative and visionary" contribution in the field of microinsurance research in India, Asia, and worldwide. Earlier this year, Prof. Dror was also honored by the HEAL Foundation for his "Leadership in Micro Health Insurance." As a part of the Second National Health Writers' and Communicators' Convention, that took place this September at the India International Center in New Delhi, Prof. Dror was recognized for his "vast experience working with grassroots groups in low income countries and employing his conceptual framework for the uplift of the poor in these countries." The HEAL Foundation is a non-profit organization that functions as an advocacy and communications platform to raise awareness about public health issues. The convention was held in effort to address "people's attitude and behavior towards health and wellness". Upon conclusion, an Action Plan was developed and compiled into a New Delhi Global Pledge on Good Health. May we introduce...Dr. Pradeep Panda, Senior Researcher, MIA. Dr. Pradeep Panda is a population economist and has been associated with academic research for the last two decades. He has held positions at the University of Mumbai and at the Centre for Development Studies in Trivandrum. He has also contributed to applied research at the National Council for Applied Economic Research and the Population Council in New Delhi, and at the Institute for Rural Research and Development in Gurgaon, where he was Director of Rural Research. Dr. Panda has published papers in peer-reviewed journals and has undertaken empirical research on the gender dimensions of poverty, employment, violence, health and human rights. In his role as a Senior Researcher at the MIA, Dr. Panda leads a team of researchers for the EC-funded project on impact assessments of community based health insurance schemes in India.
I liked the MIA's interdisciplinary approach to examining health status in communities. I was also attracted to the MIA's application of research to alter health seeking behaviors in communities. Even though I have been previously engaged in several research projects, I did not have the opportunity to link research directly with community action. However, the work at MIA sets in motion a new approach. Every component has to be established in tandem with communities' abilities and understanding and with an awareness of the medium to long-term impacts on both the project and the community. This approach has certainly added value to my thinking and my way of conducting research. Please describe the MIA's current work on the Community Based Health Insurance (CBHI) Project. The project is an effort to build an effective, efficient, responsive and sustainable CBHI system in India and aims to implement an innovative new model of CBHI. This model is characterized primarily by the inclusion of all of the household members and all members of a target group working in the benefit package design and insurance administration. These steps will help to mobilize social capital to reduce market and insurance failures. This research is a departure from all earlier work in this area because it assesses the impact of CBHI schemes by collecting panel data over a four year period, and by using rigorous quantitative, qualitative and spatial methodologies to examine cause-effect relationship. What are the long term objectives of the MIA research team? The overall long term objective is to engage in cutting edge empirical research on micro-insurance and build a solid evidence base for further policy in this direction. Specifically through this EC-funded project, we wish to assess the impact of CBHI on access to health care, financial protection and ultimately the health status of a population. Specific long term objectives of the MIA research team are the following: (a) to understand the impact of micro insurance holistically, (b) to develop best practices in the micro insurance sector, (c) to develop a cadre of multi-disciplinary researchers, (d) to develop industry-standard indicators, and (e) to translate research into policy action. What does MIA research mean for India's poorest communities? In India, out-of-pocket expenses on health care account for 77 percent of the total health care expenditure. High aggregated health costs force three percent of the population annually and one in four hospitalized patients to fall below the poverty line. We anticipate that through the work at the MIA, there will be a clearer understanding of the working of micro health insurance schemes. In addition, it will bring to light the differences between CBHI and government sponsored health insurance schemes and bridge the gaps in the future design and implementation of such programs. Hopefully in the future, there will also be a knowledge diffusion and dissemination about various health insurance programs, which will in turn help communities to demand better services and programs for themselves. |
The MIA and Save the Children have recently released the preliminary findings of a comprehensive Baseline Survey carried out in the two districts of Banke and Dhading, Nepal. The preliminary findings confirm that following the large-scale success of microcredit in the country, microinsurance has a large scope to become another important intervention to benefit poor families in rural Nepal.
The first major meeting of the international European Commission (EC)-funded research-cum-implementation consortium on Developing Efficient and Responsive CBHI in India took place in Delhi from the 20th to the 23rd of October 2009 and represented the first important step of this ambitious global collaboration.
The MIA was awarded the role of lead technical adviser by 
The Micro Insurance Academy (MIA) and 
During her recent visit to New Delhi for the Microfinance India Summit, Princess Maxima of the Netherlands graciously made time to meet with senior team members of the MIA. The meeting presented MIA with a unique opportunity to explain our implementation model for community-based microinsurance and the scope of our current projects.
As part of the Asia Insurance Industry Awards in Singapore, Prof. David Dror was awarded Personality of the Year 2009 "for his groundbreaking research and study which has helped boost understanding of how the world's poorest communities can benefit from microinsurance".
What attracted you to the MIA and how has joining the MIA added value to your career?
