“The Chronicle of Philanthropy” featured Opportunity International‘s microinsurance work with subsidiary MicroEnsure and our CEO Vicki Escarra in an article published today. As part of Opportunity International’s commitment to bringing insurance to protect more people in poverty, Opportunity divested much of its share to allow for a capital infusion that will increase MicroEnsure’s market reach.
Jacob Chikayiko (right), a farmer in Malawi, bought insurance from MicroEnsure to protect against crop failure caused by inclement weather.
Opportunity will continue to maintain the mission of this microinsurance organization. The shareholder agreement stipulates a commitment to maintaining a low-income customer base, serving people who most need the protection of insurance. In its support of MicroEnsure, Opportunity is partnering with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Omidyar Network, which have each made a $5 million investment in the company. In the article, Vicki Escarra stated, “To meet the needs of that kind of growth, we needed more capital infusion than we were capable of getting. The rate of growth was what drove us to say, ‘We need partners to help us do this.’”
