Searching: Research & Analysis

Confronting the Climate and Health Nexus: Lessons from Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA)

This case study is the third in CGAP's series on scaling inclusive insurance while preserving consumer value. Aimed at distribution networks — specifically grassroots networks — and insurers, it takes a deep dive into SEWA's innovative heat insurance product, developed with partners and grounded in direct insights into the needs and risks of its members.

Scaling Inclusive Insurance through Government Systems: Lessons from the World Food Programme

Drawing on WFP's work in Zambia, Ethiopia, Cuba, and Guatemala, this case study shows how inclusive insurance can build food-secure nations at scale. Key lessons: government integration cuts costs and drives uptake; forecast-based payouts protect smallholder livelihoods faster; and risk reduction is no longer optional — it is a prerequisite for insurability.

Leveraging Social Protection Networks for Inclusive Insurance: Lessons from Fiji

This case study draws on UNCDF's experience in Fiji to explore the effectiveness of social protection networks as a distribution channel and the role of subsidies. It reveals three conditions are needed for success: strong policy backing, long-standing UNCDF engagement, and existing social protection networks.

Inclusive Pensions for an Aging World: Evidence and Strategies for Engaging Informal Workers

This Working Paper reviews how different countries have designed pension schemes for informal workers. It focuses on contributory schemes for the “missing middle”: informal workers with sufficiently stable incomes to save for old age but who lack access to suitable pension options.

Building Rural Women’s Climate Resilience: Seven Business Drivers Delivering Commercial Value

As climate pressures rise, strengthening rural women’s resilience is critical for their livelihoods and for the long-term viability of the rural businesses that serve them. Through ABERA (Accelerating Business to Empower Rural Women in Agriculture), a CGAP and IDH collaboration, this paper identifies seven practical business drivers that simultaneously strengthen rural women’s climate resilience and business performance.

From Safety Net to Springboard

As climate risks intensify, there is an urgent need to better support low-income communities to adapt and build resilience. This paper highlights an untapped opportunity hiding in plain sight - integrating financial services into social protection programs – and outlines five priorities for funders, policymakers, and social protection professionals to unlock its potential.

Enhancing Food Security through Finance-Enabled Food Systems Transformation

This working paper examines how inclusive finance can address today's evolving food security challenges by unlocking targeted investments in high-impact agricultural value chains that best promote nutritional, sustainability, and livelihood outcomes through agricultural technology (AgTech) adoption.

How Can We Improve Resilience Globally? Leading Experts Weigh In

In June 2025, CGAP convened nearly 200 global decisionmakers in Amsterdam involved in global resilience responses for a Symposium titled, “Rethinking Resilience: Why Inclusive Finance Can’t Wait”. In this bonus episode of Inclusive Finance Frontiers, hear from participants interviewed on the sidelines of the Symposium on how inclusive finance tools—such as savings, credit, insurance, and digital payments—can strengthen resilience for those most at risk and drive sustainable development.

Inclusive Insurance: Scaling for Resilience and Impact

Insurance builds resilience by helping people manage shocks and invest confidently in their futures. Yet, inclusive insurance remains small-scale due to barriers in demand, supply, and policy. This deck explores challenges and opportunities—showing how funders can unlock insurance’s full potential as a catalyst for stability, security, and economic growth.

Resilience for All: Why Inclusive Finance Can't Wait

The world faces urgent challenges as risks intensify and interconnect, amplifying vulnerabilities, especially for low-income populations and small and medium enterprises (MSEs). If left unaddressed, these vulnerabilities can create ripple effects with national, regional, and global consequences. This paper highlights the importance of inclusive finance as an indispensable component of resilience responses, and calls on everyone working on increasing resilience to leverage inclusive finance to enhance the reach, speed, and impact of their work.