SCBF The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on low- and moderate-income populations, micro, small, and medium enterprises, farmers, and CICO agents around the world. With limited savings and assets to fall back on, coupled with a squeeze on access to finance, these segments faced severe disruptions in demand and payment cycles. This led to challenges related to business continuity and survival, and it needs appropriate responses at all levels to support their recovery in the a­ftermath of the crisis.

MSC, with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Metlife Foundation, Mastercard Foundation, and SCBF, conducted a research exercise to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. MSC examined the needs, attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors of micro and small enterprises, farmers, and CICO agents in several countries including Kenya, Uganda, India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Senegal, and the Philippines. The research entailed an assessment of the impact of COVID-19 on key segments of the economy in these countries and the response of the governments and the private sector to deal with the pandemic. Further, MSC assessed the key changes in business operations, customer demand, impact on supplies, business expenses, and the coping strategies adopted, among other factors.

MSC and SCBF hosted two webinars to share the interesting insights from the research. 

Though the economic impacts of Covid-19 continue to evolve, recent evidence suggests inclusive fintech startups are adapting via new channels and cash-saving measures while meeting users’ changing needs. Unfortunately, this data also indicates that users may not be faring as well since incomes have fallen significantly and savings levels are low.

New survey data co-funded by SCBF shows how inclusive fintechs are adapting to the Covid-19 pandemic. Read the full article for key findings around productivity, cash runway, and resilience. The findings were also presented during a webinar at the Financial Inclusion Week, in which the Catalyst Fund, the Center for Financial Inclusion, and SCBF explored the demand side research on fintechs’ customers and their financial health.

Covid-19 is a new acute threat to the well-being of low- and middle-income households in developing countries. It adds to the list of insurable risks which force households into poverty and creates heightened global insurance demand. Nepal has 46’257 confirmed Covid-19 cases as of 7 September 2020. As in other countries, the actual number of Covid-19 cases is likely to be higher than the officially reported number.

Currently, the main constraint in terms of responding to demand is on the supply side. The Nepali insurance sector is small with an estimated 17.5% of the population having some form of insurance, and most low-income households do not have access to insurance at all. The current Covid-19 pandemic provides an opportunity for local insurance companies and e-Health service companies to work together to offer critical risk protection products to the Nepali public related to Covid-19, while establishing a platform to expand insurance in the market.

In response to Covid-19, the SCBF product upscaling project supports the local insurtech company Stonestep TFD Nepal to implement an e-Health Value Added Service (VAS) product with two core features: e-health tele-consultation bundled with Covid-19 insurance. The e-Health VAS will be offered via outbound SMS and in-App notifications to customers registered with the mobile money partner, DigiPay Mobile Money, and TDO Nepal will provide the online health content and telephonic doctor consultations, as well as distribution. This is a first-of-its-kind product that will improve the resilience of low- and middle-income families in Nepal. Women are particularly vulnerable to the current Covid-19 pandemic, especially when they are the key person in the household who takes care of the sick and elderly, as well as the well-being and nutrition of their children – when falling sick, the whole family is affected.

The e-Health VAS product will be promoted in urban / peri-urban areas in Kathmandu valley before expanding geographically to rural areas. A projected 5’000 clients will be enrolled by the end of the project in May 2021. DigiPay and TDO Nepal have combined over 50’000 customers, but the goal is to find additional distribution partners, so that the outreach will be even higher.

Since 2018, the International Cooperative and Mutual Insurance Federation (ICMIF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have explored how the global mutual and cooperative industry can build resilience and deliver inclusive insurance solutions in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This webinar presented how the mutual and cooperative sector has responded to the COVID-19 pandemic in emerging markets, and what is being done to promote development through insurance and risk finance. (recorded in June 2020/ duration 1 hour) >> here

A key pillar of the EBRD’s Solidarity Package is a Resilience Framework providing finance to meet the short-term liquidity and working capital needs of existing clients. Demand has been strong and, as part of the scaled up response, financing available under the Framework will rise to €4 billion from €1 billion until a further assessment of needs before the end of this year. The EBRD has widened its scope to include the affiliates of existing clients. >> more

IFC is investing up to USD 20 million into a newly independent, institutionalized private equity fund manager operating in MENA, to help SMEs in the region improve their access to institutional capital and boost growth. The Fund, SPE AIF I is managed by SPE Capital Partners and will focus mainly on Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia. The investment is part of IFC's strategy to partner with selected fund managers in key regions to meet the needs of fast-growing companies, to help mobilize additional institutional capital in high growth sectors and ultimately strengthen capital markets.

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The 2X Challenge Working Group and the Gender Finance Collaborative seek to ensure that gender dynamics are considered in the COVID-19 responses of DFIs, investors and other financial intermediaries. Rapid crisis responses include: Provision of direct financial and advisory support to existing investees affected by the crisis, prioritizing sectors such as healthcare services, manufacturing for the healthcare sector and solution providers, collaboration to provide liquidity or working capital to financial institutions and intermediaries that incorporate a gender lens, deployment of technical assistance (TA) funding to help existing investees weather the crisis in a gender-responsive way, leveraging existing platforms such as the Association of European DFIs (EDFI) TA Working Group. >> more

The U.K.'s Department for International Development (DFID) is set to announce a package of funding to support organizations' work in low-income countries that are most at risk. Funding will go through  a rapid response facility that was created during Sierra Leone's cholera outbreak in 2012. The details on the volume of the package has not been announced yet. >> more