Executive Summary for Protecting the Poor: Microinsurance Compendium

This paper is an executive summary of the book, “Protecting the Poor: A Microinsurance Compendium”.The executive summary states that:

• Workers in the informal economy are more vulnerable to risks and less able to cope when crises do occur,
• Anxiety about future risks prevents the poor from taking advantage of income-generating opportunities that might reduce poverty,
• Microinsurance helps the poor manage risk and should be part of the arsenal of development agencies, donors and governments in their quest to reduce poverty and achieve the ‘Millennium Development Goals.

The executive summary discusses:

• The background to the book,
• Its target audience,
• The articles on ‘Principles and Practices,
• Microinsurance products, services and operations,
• Institutional options,
• Role of other stakeholders.

It concludes by stating that:

• The sustainability of a scheme ensures permanent access to services,
• The sustainability dilemma boils down to a trade-off between three competing objectives: coverage, costs and affordability,
• Successful microinsurance schemes involve their clients in choosing the benefits and levels of coverage they can afford,
• The future success of microinsurance depends on achieving prudent, profitable and continuous growth and development,
• Microinsurance, combined with efforts to enhance productivity, can help alleviate poverty.