NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Thursday, April 30, 2015

The 21 member-economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is pushing for microinsurance to mitigate the impact of natural disasters.

The two-day disaster risk finance meeting, which started Wednesday, April 29, discussed initiatives on disaster risk management.

Arup Chatterjee, principal financial sector specialist of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), said that the global damage brought by calamities has already reached $300 billion.

He urged global leaders to bring down the figure by investing in microinsurance, adding that it is a wise investment to strengthen resilience among vulnerable communities.

Chatterjee added that insurers play a critical role in providing financial protection. He said that 9 out of 10 fatalities come from low-middle income countries, “a disaster in one region can cause economic turbulence to another.”

He also said that “true resilience comes from the strong bond of the countries and translate crisis into opportunities.”