Micro-insurance for disaster risk reduction

Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) aims to help decision-makers in developing countries design and deliver climate compatible development. CDKN does this by providing demand-led research and technical assistance, and channelling the best available knowledge on climate change and development to support policy processes at the country level.

CDKN strives to capture and communicate learning from projects, and influence national and international debate and processes on climate compatible development (CCD).

Disaster insurance has quickly risen up the global policy agenda; there is a headlong rush to provide insurance products to help transfer retained or residual disaster risk, whether sovereign, micro- or reinsurance. These efforts have involved governments, private sector (nationally and internationally), research groups and NGOs. The opportunities to link index-based micro-insurance with efforts to promote adaptation, DRR and development therefore appear ample.

By transferring risk and providing a safety net against extreme events, micro-insurance offers the opportunity to protect the poorest and most vulnerable members of community. With the lure of reducing costs of monitoring and speedy settlement on the part of insurance companies, an increasing number of international initiatives have focused on the provision of index-based insurance schemes, particularly in South and South-East Asia.

However, the evidence basis for the effectiveness of disaster insurance remains thin, and this is a major knowledge gap given the groundswell of interest in insurance products. There are many unknowns about this approach; particularly the experience of people involved in the schemes, or of those who cannot afford to insure themselves but who experience impacts indirectly (e.g. through other community members receiving payouts). CDKN is already involved in scoping and researching these issues ? for example in Pakistan? and there is clear demand from governments, NGOs and the international community for a better understanding of peoples' experience of micro-insurance. CDKN has also published a blog on this topic: http://cdkn.org/2012/06/seduced-by-disaster-insurance-dont-dive-in./.

CDKN is seeking a supplier to document evidence and experience of applying index based micro-insurance in South and South East Asia. The project will look to add value by focusing on a particular geographic region (South and South East Asia) and qualitatively documenting the views and perspectives of leading authorities from academia, policy and practice on the latest evidence and experience. The work will be desk based, and combine a systematic assessment of existing literature with a series of interviews from selected key-informants.

The objective of the research is to document evidence and experiences in delivering index-based micro-insurance schemes in the context of South and South-East Asia. In so doing, it is hoped that the research will add to evidence base on evaluating the effectiveness of disaster insurance as a tool for promoting adaptation and disaster risk reduction.

The project is expected to last for 5 months starting in January 2013. Successful bidders will need to satisfy the following requirements:

Research experience in South and/or South-East Asia and familiarity in interpreting quantitative data are preferable.
 
In order to express an interest in this opportunity, please complete the following 2 steps:
 
Step 1:
Send an email to the CDKN Procurement team ([email protected]) including the following information:

Step 2:
Please download the Invitation to Tender document, a Non Disclosure Agreement, a copy of CDKN's Expense Policy and the CDKN Terms and Conditions (all available at this link).  Complete the documents where relevant and submit these to the CDKN Procurement team ([email protected]) before the deadline stated below.
 
Both steps are to be completed and your documents [including the signed Non-Disclosure Agreement] submitted by the deadline of 17.00 UK time on 11 January 2013. 
 
Please note, we will accept and respond to questions with respect to this opportunity and the associated documents provided they are received by CDKN Procurement before 17.00 UK time on 4 January 2013.

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