MICRORIMI is a three-year (2010-2013) research project of the Finance and Development Group of the Research Centre on International Cooperation (University of Bergamo). The project aims to purse the following objectives:

1. Contribute to measuring the exposure of the poor to hazards, in particular weather hazards, and their capacity to cope with them.
2. Outline the potential role played by the formal and informal local financial system in weather risk management. In particular, look into the actual and potential contribution of microfinance services, both traditional (deposits, loans and insurance) and innovative (such as index-based insurance) services.
3. Assess the MFI's capacity to manage and mitigate hazards.
4. Devise guidelines on good and effective risk management strategies in rural areas of developing countries.

Activities

• Periodical surveys of 360 households in three Ethiopian villages (two times per year). The villages are located in the Wolayta zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and People's Region (SNNPR)
• Controlled experiments on risk preference, social network dynamics and financial decision process of surveyed households
• Computer simulated experiments.

Partners

• Wolayta Soddo University (Ethiopia)

Sponsors

• Giordano Dell'Amore Foundation
• Government of Lombardy Region
• CARIPLO Foundation