CelsiusPro’s Global Parametrics team, in collaboration with Mahila Housing Trust, Howden Insurance Brokers Limited, and Go Digit General Insurance, has introduced a pioneering climate risk insurance (CRI) product providing financial protection for women in India’s informal sector against extreme heatwaves.
In India, where 80% of the workforce operates in the informal sector, approximately 90-92% of these workers are poor women. Many of these women work from home, enduring rudimentary living and working conditions.
Extreme heatwaves not only affect housing and living conditions but also directly impact infrastructure, income, and health. Due to the nature of their work, these women are unable to leave their homes during such events.
Without adequate climate resilience and risk mitigation measures, the frequency and intensity of these events will only worsen existing difficulties.
To address these challenges, the CRI product will leverage the risk capacity of the Natural Disaster Fund (NDF), managed by CelsiusPro’s Global Parametrics team. It will underwrite three credit cooperatives for women in the cities of Ahmedabad, Vadodara, and Surat, providing coverage against the risk of extreme heat.
Moreover, this initiative will introduce an innovative product to the market, accelerating and expanding scalable risk transfer programs into communities with limited access to financial services.
