Building resilience of the urban poor: the potential for disaster risk financing solutions used by microfinance institutions
This report shows how innovative finance solutions can bolster climate resilience in the fast-urbanizing Asia and the Pacific by helping microfinance institutions (MFIs) funnel emergency support to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Explaining why MFIs struggle to support vulnerable SMEs when climate or geophysical shocks hit, it explores how disaster risk financing (DRF) solutions can harness global financial and insurance markets to transfer risk and provide capital. It recommends ADB spearheads a regional facility to manage risk transfer and ensure MFIs receive the contingent capital and credit they need to help SME owners rebuild their businesses and livelihoods.
