The Filipino word “Nanay” (mother) has a deep meaning in the local culture as it translates to the beacon of unconditional love and utmost care.
Unknown to many, this same maternal light has been illuminating the microinsurance industry in the Philippines through CARD Pioneer Microinsurance Inc. (CPMI).
CPMI recently launched the book, “Covering Nanay: The Philippine Microinsurance Journey,” a testament to the invaluable partnership between CARD MRI and Pioneer Insurance, and agents who are mostly whom Filipinos call the light of a family.
The book narrates how CPMI, with the Nanays at its core, transformed the Philippine microinsurance industry into a global benchmark for financial inclusion.
Covering Nanay talks about CARD, Pioneer, and CPMI’s path from ground zero to nearly 24 million enrollments at last count.
The book is authored by CPMI founders — Dr. Aristotle Alip, CARD MRI founder, and Lorenzo Chan Jr., Pioneer group head — together with Pia Yupangco.
CPMI beginnings
Established in 2013, CPMI is a joint venture between the Center for Agriculture and Rural Development Mutually Reinforcing Institutions (CARD MRI) and Pioneer Insurance.
It is the country’s first non-life insurance provider specifically addressing health and accident, damage to property and agriculture, and income loss arising from fire, calamity and other climate-related challenges of the low-income sector.
Chan, also chairperson of the Luxembourg-based global multi-stakeholder organization known as the Microinsurance Network, underlined the company’s passion to raise the consciousness of Filipinos in ensuring their future during the book launch.
He got the idea for microinsurance when he noticed the numerous sachet products sold in Palawan sari-sari stores.
“I asked myself, ‘Why not offer insurance in sachet form, in bite-sized affordable chunks for the underserved and unserved who need it the most?’ We are fortunate to have found the perfect partner in CARD MRI through Alip,” Chan said.
Under Alip’s leadership, CARD MRI was the recipient of the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Public Service in 2008.
Dr. Alip said that the origin of CARD Pioneer is a tale about disrupting the conventional ways of the insurance industry.
“The key in addressing the protection gap is to disrupt the normal time frame in releasing insurance claims by targeting 1-3-5 which is ideally one day to pay the policyholder, three days if there is a need to address any possible issues, and a maximum of five days to release the pay-out or decline an application. This was next to impossible for insurance companies at that time, but Pioneer agreed to implement this disruptive process,” Alip said.
Alip said that the execution of 1-3-5 was crucial in gaining the trust and confidence of the Nanays to prove that they could get their benefits as fast as possible during a time of need.
“We recruited Nanays to offer microinsurance to other Nanays in communities with the promise of delivering 1-3-5. When the Nanay policyholders saw that Pioneer and later CPMI were committed to fulfilling 1-3-5, word started to spread and we won the trust and confidence of Nanays and their clients,” he said.
