The InsuResilience Solutions Fund is set to support the efforts of the Microinsurance Catastrophe Risk Organisation (MiCRO) and SBS Seguros Colombia S.A to strengthen Colombia’s resilience to natural catastrophes.
MiCRO, a socially oriented commercial enterprise focused in Latin America, provides innovative, technology-based solutions designed to help families and micro-entrepreneurs recover from the effects of natural catastrophes.
After the successful pilot of its inclusive insurance solution in Guatemala and El Salvador, MiCRO has expanded its activities to Colombia through a partnership with SBS Seguros Colombia S.A, as it looks to maximise impact and reach scale.
MiCRO has announced that its efforts in Colombia will now be supported by the InsuResilience Solutions Fund, represented by the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management.
Funded by KfW on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the InsuResilience Solutions Fund is designed to support innovative climate risk insurance products to mitigate the negative impacts of climate change.
Steve Mitchell, MiCRO’s Chairman, commented: “Closing the protection gap where most needed is a task that calls for multilateral partnerships to ensure the resources for product scaling and achievement of our organizations’ visions. The signing of this grant agreement between MiCRO and SBS Seguros, together with the Frankfurt School as a manager of InsuResilience Solutions Fund, is an important step in that direction.”
MiCRO’s solutions look to increase the resilience of underserved segments of the population, providing some of the world’s most vulnerable people with access to affordable risk management solutions by leveraging leading technologies. MiCRO’s products are index-based and structured to protect the continuity of productive activities following the occurrence of a natural catastrophe event, such as droughts, earthquakes, and excess rain.
The agriculture and small business sectors are vital to many Latin American economies, all of which are susceptible to a range of natural disasters.
“This grant will help us to co-fund market entry costs and growth activities in Colombia, which demand continuous innovation and efforts to bring innovative risk management solutions to vulnerable smallholder farmers and entrepreneurs,” said Carlos Boelsterli, MiCRO’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
Martha Pava, CEO of SBS Seguros Colombia S.A, added: “The support of the InsuResilience Solutions Fund will leverage the resources we are investing into this important initiative. This will contribute to our main goal of widening the reach of affordable and appealing protection to the underserved and vulnerable communities of the population.”
