The cooperative will have around 10,000 members spread over five states.
The Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) will be launching the first insurance cooperative in India and is in the process of registering it under a national insurance cooperatives scheme.
This new insurance cooperative, which is likely to be registered within a week as a majority of the paperwork has been completed, will be the 103rd cooperative started by SEWA.
SEWA’s insurance cooperative will have around 10,000 members in five states of India. The NGO already has around three lakh members in 102 cooperatives.
Ila Bhatt, the founder of SEWA, announced the new venture on Monday, during the national cooperative week and 87th international cooperative day organised by the Gujarat State Women’s SEWA Cooperative Federation Ltd.
“This will probably be India’s first such cooperative. Some countries like Japan have such concepts. Starting an insurance cooperative is a dream I have had for a long time, and it has faced many obstacles before becoming a reality,” Bhatt said.
The SEWA Cooperative Bank sells health and life insurance, but the insurance cooperative will provide a boost to the security of SEWA members, Bhatt said, suggesting that they buy insurance to remain safe.
“It is not going to be easy. Each one of you will have to work hard. Come up with small insurance products and products that are easy to understand. Ideally, members should invest money in fixed deposits as the interest will help to pay the insurance premium,” Bhatt said.
The founder of SEWA also emphasised on the need for reform in the cooperative sector. “Cooperatives should be given as much as importance as the corporate sector. Self-employed workers are not protected, and there is need for proper laws. The SEWA Cooperative Federation is unique and carries both profit and loss. The government should implement laws for the unorganised sector,” she said.
“Social business is the future. The SEWA cooperatives are among the major contributors to India’s economic growth. The SEWA Cooperative Federation is the first of its kind in India, for its uniqueness, and it sets an example for self-employment,” said Lalita Krishnaswamy, president, Gujarat State Women’s SEWA Cooperative Ltd.
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