Port-au-Prince, January 29, 2013 - IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is partnering with donors and the Microinsurance Catastrophe Risk Organisation (MiCRO) to help thousands of low-income micro entrepreneurs protect their livelihoods against weather-related risks and natural disasters.

Haiti is highly prone to earthquakes, hurricanes, floods and other natural disasters that have devastating effects on the country's population and economy. However, only 0.3 percent of the population has some form of insurance, one of the lowest rates in the world. Micro-entrepreneurs are particularly vulnerable to uninsured losses, as these can force them to default on debts and disqualify them from future loans at a time when they need capital to recover.

IFC’s $1.96 million project with MiCRO includes a $1.7 million performance-based grant and $260,000 in technical assistance from the Global Index Insurance Facility (GIIF).

The project will help provide Haitian micro-entrepreneurs with affordable weather-index insurance. It will be distributed through Fonkoze, a micro-finance institution in Haiti. Over the next three years, close to 70,000 Fonkoze clients, mostly rural women, are expected to be insured through the program. They include shopkeepers, traders, and market vendors who provide their communities with the essential goods and services.   

“In Haiti, entrepreneurs at the base of the pyramid, and women in particular, must be given the opportunity to generate income for their households, grow their businesses, create jobs, and build assets,” said Ary Naim, IFC Representative in Haiti. “With this innovative product, IFC hopes to have a strong impact, preventing natural disasters from wiping out the hard work of thousands of Haitian entrepreneurs to get out of poverty.”

“There is tremendous potential in Haiti. By working with IFC and our local partners we can provide much-needed insurance that helps Haitians unleash economic growth,” said Javier Niño Perez, Head of the EU delegation in Haiti.  “This project in Haiti is an important step toward developing sustainable local markets for insurance that helps the poor protect themselves from natural disasters and weather-related risks.”

GIIF is a program managed by IFC and jointly implemented with the World Bank. GIIF is funded mainly by the European Union with additional funding from the Netherlands and Japan.