Model Insured Villages: A concept that has great potential to serve the rural population

In a recent discussion paper about devising plans to increase penetration of insurance in rural India with a special focus on agriculture and allied activities, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) suggested setting up model insured villages throughout the country. I completely believe in this concept and feel that it has the potential to make the insurance benefits visible to rural communities.

 The penetration of insurance products in India was at 2.71% in 2001 and has only risen to 3.71% at present. This is a far cry from the global average of 7.31%[1]. I believe if we have to grow the penetration of insurance we need to cater to rural India since 65% of the population still resides in villages. The COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc across sectors but it highlighted the need for insurance, particularly health insurance amongst the general public. I believe now is the right time to move towards serving customers at the bottom of the economic pyramid by implementing new insurance models and products that meet their needs. 

 At Spice Money, we constantly work towards assisting the rural population by offering essential digital, financial and e-retail services such as cash deposit and withdrawals, bill payments, money transfers, loans and more. Through our business, we’ve built a vast network of Banking Correspondents with nearly 5.5 Lakhs Spice Money Adhikaris. Along with our on-ground sales team, we serve almost 95% of India’s rural pincodes, 700 districts and 5000 blocks. With actor and philanthropist Sonu Sood coming on board Team Spice Money, as a Brand Ambassador and Advisory Board Member, we’ve established a deeper connection with rural India. His efforts to uplift the lives of those in rural India is aligned with our vision to drive financial inclusion and encourage the adoption of digital services in rural communities.

 We believe in the cause of empowering rural India, digitally and financially, and to that effect would love to jointly work towards establishing model insured villages across the country. We see a tremendous requirement for insurance in rural India and we look forward to working alongside IRDAI to make a greater difference to our rural community.

 [1] Source: https://www.financialexpress.com/money/insurance/insurance-sector-rural-india-needs-insurance-in-sachet-form/2197374/