Birgunj:  A total of 90.6 percent of citizens in Madhesh Province are without insurance coverage. The province has a population exceeding 6,114,000.

The limited attraction towards insurance among the people of Madhesh is attributed to a lack of awareness and the practice of buying insurance schemes from across the border in India. According to the Madhesh Province Office of the Nepal Insurance Authority (NIA), only 573,433 people, or 9.4 percent of the population, have purchased insurance policies in the province. This data indicates a low level of interest in insurance among the general public.

Kusum Sharma, chief of the NIA Madhesh Province Office, emphasized the need to promote insurance coverage throughout the province in coordination with all three levels of government. "Access to insurance in Madhesh Province is found to be low. Since the economic and health conditions of the people here are weak, it is necessary to develop the practice of providing insurance to the entire province by coordinating with all three tiers of government," Sharma stressed.

Sharma pointed out the necessity of insuring all the people in Madhesh Province, similar to the initiative in Karnali Province, where the state government has covered insurance for all residents. Sharma added that the authority is ready to provide the necessary facilitation for this effort.

The lack of insurance access is not only an issue in Madhesh Province but also across the entire country. As of April 12, 2024, only 43.3 percent of the population of the entire nation had access to insurance, leaving 56.7 percent without life insurance coverage. However, the situation is far better compared to six years ago, when only 17 percent of the population had insurance coverage.

Nirmal Khanal, assistant director of the NIC Madhesh Province Office, noted that the low insurance literacy among citizens and the tradition of purchasing insurance policies from Indian companies in border markets have hindered insurance access.

"Due to high poverty and illiteracy in Madhesh Province, the idea of buying insurance policies has not developed among the general population. The proximity to the Indian border market and the practice of purchasing Indian insurance policies have also impeded our efforts to increase public interest in insurance," he added.

Khanal explained that the limited attraction towards insurance in Madhesh Province is also due to the tendency to seek unfair benefits from insurance, the lack of human resources in insurance branches/sub-branches, and misunderstandings about insurance, which lead to it being least prioritized. -- RSS