Housed at the International Labour Organization’s Social Finance Programme, the Microinsurance Innovation Facility pushes the frontier of microinsurance around the world. With our partners we investigate better ways to protect the lives and enhance the livelihoods of low-income people. We collect, consolidate, and share emerging knowledge and best practices with the microinsurance sector.

The Facility was launched in 2008 with generous support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; additional funding has gratefully been received from several donors, including the Z Zurich Foundation and AusAID.

Our achievements

Between 2008 and 2012, the Facility and its collaborators made significant progress, achieving:

• A strong community of practice among innovators. We provided grants to 63 organizations to test new products, models, and strategies, and facilitating south-south exchange to support the learning process;
• Demonstration cases for improved client value and business viability. Breakthroughs include technology for livestock insurance in India; new claims processes for catastrophic insurance in Haiti; value-added services for Indian health microinsurance; and the introduction of alternative distribution channels in the Philippines, India, Brazil and Mexico;
• A growing cadre of microinsurance experts. We have assisted 57 individuals and organizations with capacity building through fellowships, mentoring and consulting services;
• Better evidence about how insurance can benefit the poor. We provided research grants and published 30 papers by academics and leading thinkers;
• Improved access to knowledge through an online platform that tracks partners’ progress while aggregating and disseminating lessons. Over 3,000 stakeholders currently access the content through more than 6,000 website visits per month; and
• Market development with UNCDF in Ethiopia, Kenya and Zambia, in collaboration with the Access to Insurance Initiative (A2ii).