Membership-based indigenous insurance associations in Ethiopia and Tanzania

This chapter discusses a particular form of membership-based organisation of the poor – a membership-based indigenous insurance association. They are associations of people who have an explicit agreement to help each other in a specified way when well-defined events occur. These institutions are discussed in two rural contexts: of Ethiopia and Tanzania. In both countries, they have gradually evolved into well-structured groups offering insurance to help cover mainly funeral and hospitalisation expenses. This chapter discusses their history, the way they currently operate, their coverage, and their impact. As many of these associations focus on funeral insurance, we discuss briefly some evidence on how they have been affected by the HIV/AIDS crisis.