3. Micro-Insurance: Definitions of Informal Economy

The term, “Informal Economy” was first used by Keith Hart (Informal Income Opportunities and Urban Employment in Ghana” in Journal of Modern African Studies) during the 1970s to describe the temporary economic strategies adopted by migrant workers in Ghana. Over time, various definitions have come into place:

ILO’s Kenya Report (Employment incomes and equality: A strategy for increasing productive employment in Kenya, 1972) defines informal activities as “a way of doing things”, characterized by (a) ease of entry (b) reliance of indigenous resources (c) family ownership of enterprises (d) small scale of operation (e) labour intensive and adapted technology (f) skill acquired outside of the formal school system (g) unregulated and competitive markets.
M. Castells and A. Portes (World Underneath: the Origins, Dynamics and Effects of the Informal Economy, 1989) state that informal sector activities are “unregulated by the institutions of society, in a legal and social environment in which similar activities are regulated.”
M. Swaminathan says (in “Understanding the Informal Sector: A Survey, 1991), the informal sector “is a mode of organization different from the unity of production that is most familiar in economic theory, the firm or corporation. These (informal) activities are also likely to be unregulated by the state and excluded from standard economic accounts of national incomes.

Although several authors have attempted to give a comprehensive definition of this sector, it has been concluded that it is not possible to develop an exact exposition of the term. Frequently, it has been referred to those activities that are, of course, largely contributing to the country’s employment and production capacity, yet are not regulated by the government in terms of payment of taxes, labour provisions, legal transactions and business permits.

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CONTENTS:
1. Micro-Insurance: The Difference between Formal and Informal Economy…….2. Micro-Insurance: Characteristics of Formal and Informal Economy…….3. Micro-Insurance: Definitions of Informal Economy…….4. Micro-Insurance: Scope of Informal Economy…….5. Micro-Insurance: Some Facts about Informal Economy…….6. Micro-Insurance: Women and the Informal Economy…….7. Micro-Insurance: Implications of Informal Economy on Women…….8. Micro-Insurance: Social Protection…….9. Micro-Insurance: Social Protection is a Human Right…….10. Micro-Insurance: The Need for Social Protection…….11. Micro-Insurance: Risks…….12. Micro-Insurance: Risks in the Informal Economy…….13. Micro-Insurance: Definition…….14. Micro-Insurance: Principles of Micro-Insurance…….15. Micro-Insurance: Types – The Independent Model…….16. Micro-Insurance: Types – The Partnership Model…….17. Micro-Insurance: Types – The Provider Model…….18. Micro-Insurance: Types – The Integrated Model…….19. Micro-Insurance: Types – The Full-Service Model…….20. Micro-Insurance: Health Micro-Insurance