In the city of Ahmedabad, temperatures climbed above 43C (109F) every day between May 19 and May 25, creating deadly hot working conditions for many of the labourers who keep the local economy humming.
For 40-year-old Lataben Arvindbhai Makwana, it was unbearable to run her sewing machine inside her tin-roofed house, which has little ventilation and only a small ceiling fan.As a daily wage labourer, that meant she was not earning the money she needed to feed her kids and buy blood pressure medication for herself.
“It’s getting worse every summer,” Makwana said. The heat is especially dangerous for people like her who suffer from hypertension.
With climate change raising temperatures during heat waves, millions of Indians face a difficult choice: work in dangerous conditions or go hungry. But some women like Makwana are now getting help from a program to make a third choice: stop working for at least a few hours.
As soon as temperatures breached 43.6C in Ahmedabad, Makwana and thousands of other women were told that ICICI Lombard, an insurance company, would pay them a portion of their daily wages. The program uses parametric insurance, which pays out when a particular metric is hit, such as a daily high temperature.
More than 46,000 women across 22 districts in India were paid Rs 2,84,00,000 in total over last month’s heat waves. About 50,000 women are enrolled in the program. Makwana’s insurance payout was Rs 750, enough to cover food and medication for a few days. (That sum came on top of a separate charity payout of Rs 400 when the temperature breached 40C the first time.)
The Self-Employed Women’s Association labour union runs the insurance program. Its premium is paid for partly by the women enrolled in the program, with a charity covering the remaining portion. The pilot program launched last year and is set to run until April 2025.
Kathy Baughman McLeod, chief executive officer of Climate Resilience for All, the non-profit supporting the program through development, technical expertise and funding, says it has been “successful.” The charity plans to expand the insurance program to other parts of the world.
Baughman Mcleod hopes that the funders supporting the Indian program can continue to do so for a few more years. Ultimately, the plan is to get SEWA‘s 2.9 million members signed up, which would allow the plan to be funded entirely by women paying the premiums.
“Our experience is that poor women don’t want charity always,” said Reema Nanavaty, general secretary of SEWA. “Once they see that this program is addressing their dire needs, I’m sure the women would start contributing toward the program.” The eventual plan would see the premium for each woman be about a day’s wage every month, she added. Bloomberg
For 40-year-old Lataben Arvindbhai Makwana, it was unbearable to run her sewing machine inside her tin-roofed house, which has little ventilation and only a small ceiling fan.As a daily wage labourer, that meant she was not earning the money she needed to feed her kids and buy blood pressure medication for herself.
“It’s getting worse every summer,” Makwana said. The heat is especially dangerous for people like her who suffer from hypertension.
With climate change raising temperatures during heat waves, millions of Indians face a difficult choice: work in dangerous conditions or go hungry. But some women like Makwana are now getting help from a program to make a third choice: stop working for at least a few hours.
As soon as temperatures breached 43.6C in Ahmedabad, Makwana and thousands of other women were told that ICICI Lombard, an insurance company, would pay them a portion of their daily wages. The program uses parametric insurance, which pays out when a particular metric is hit, such as a daily high temperature.
More than 46,000 women across 22 districts in India were paid Rs 2,84,00,000 in total over last month’s heat waves. About 50,000 women are enrolled in the program. Makwana’s insurance payout was Rs 750, enough to cover food and medication for a few days. (That sum came on top of a separate charity payout of Rs 400 when the temperature breached 40C the first time.)
The Self-Employed Women’s Association labour union runs the insurance program. Its premium is paid for partly by the women enrolled in the program, with a charity covering the remaining portion. The pilot program launched last year and is set to run until April 2025.
Kathy Baughman McLeod, chief executive officer of Climate Resilience for All, the non-profit supporting the program through development, technical expertise and funding, says it has been “successful.” The charity plans to expand the insurance program to other parts of the world.
Baughman Mcleod hopes that the funders supporting the Indian program can continue to do so for a few more years. Ultimately, the plan is to get SEWA‘s 2.9 million members signed up, which would allow the plan to be funded entirely by women paying the premiums.
“Our experience is that poor women don’t want charity always,” said Reema Nanavaty, general secretary of SEWA. “Once they see that this program is addressing their dire needs, I’m sure the women would start contributing toward the program.” The eventual plan would see the premium for each woman be about a day’s wage every month, she added. Bloomberg