On June 10-12, MABS assisted the First Agro Industrial Rural Bank, Inc. (FAIR Bank) Microinsurance Team as it conducted training in the municipalities of Balamban and Sta. Fe in Cebu. A prelude to the launch of the bank’s microinsurance product, the MSHIELD Plan, this activity is part of the microinsurance literacy enhancement initiative designed for the bank’s microfinance field staff and clients.
Having joined the USAID-supported RBAP-MABS program in 2005, FAIR Bank now offers microfinance loans and services to about 15,000 clients. It developed its microinsurance service with its partner insurance provider, Pioneer Insurance. Alongside this partnership, RBAP-MABS provided technical support by assessing the trainers’ effectiveness and the quality of their training tools. RBAP-MABS also supported the bank in its microinsurance market research, product development, and training tool and information design.
A team of trainers each was deployed for the bank’s northern and southern branches. Each team was composed of two Community Specialist Office (CSO)staff members and an average of four group supervisors. The excellent interpersonal skills of the training team members proved instrumental to their commendable training approaches.
While the training participants responded positively to the styles employed by the trainers, results of the post-training assessment suggest a need for further emphasis on key features of the MSHIELD Plan to ensure better retention by participants. Notably, the marketing support provided by Pioneer Insurance resulted in the production of a variety of training materials, which the training team will employ in accordance to the volume and type of training participants.
As the bank increases its efforts to ensure client understanding of the MSHIELD Plan, RBAP-MABS continues to work closely with FAIR Bank and Pioneer Insurance in installing service delivery mechanisms that will allow cost-efficient registration and claims transactions for its microfinance clients. Development of a reliable management information system (MIS) is also in the pipeline for the bank. It is hoped that such preparations will facilitate the smooth launching of the MSHIELD Plan within the second half of this year.
