Sanasa Insurance Company Limited

SANASA Insurance Company Ltd (SICL) is an insurance organization, incorporated under the registered name of "Seemasahitha Sanasa Rakshana Samagama". Through SICL operates all classes of insurance business as any other commercial insurance company, it concerns mainly on designing and developing insurance schemes for the benefits of low income households. Therefore SICL has introduced unique micro insurance products in order to cater the needs and wants of the market.

The process of formation of the SANASA Insurance Company Ltd (SICL) took place in 1989, when a NGO called 'Forum on Development' (FOD) conducted a survey to identify the more popular voluntary organizations in the area of Warakapola in the Kegalle district. It was a project designed to promote development skills of voluntary organizations. The main issues to be covered in the study were built and administrated to help people in need. It was revealed in the survey that Funeral Aid Societies (FAS) were most popular and active organizations at the village level with a high degree of participation due to their need based approach of providing assistance, when there is a family calamity such as death of the breadwinner of the family or the caretaker of children and elderly persons in the family. It was future revealed, that FAS were strong with well built funds.

In the light of this information, representatives of FAS agreed to design and implement an insurance scheme of their own. The insurance scheme designed by them was named "Ahethuka Wipath Awaranaya" (risk coverage against the unfortunate perils). Benefits under this scheme included death cover and disability  caused by road accidents, occupational hazards, falling fro heights and trees, poisoning, fire and lighting, floods and snake bites, which were considered as common perils faced by the poor.

The scheme was inaugurated in October 1991 with a participatory membership of 182 persons. The organization that was established for conducting the scheme was known as "All Lanka mutual organization" (ALMAO). After 2 years operation, ALMAO become a registered society and was declared as Specially Authorized Society by the Ministry of Trade and Commerce under the Societies Ordinance.

In 1996 the micro insurance division of the SANASA Federation of Thrift and Credit Societies was amalgamated with ALMAO and as a result, insurance activities of ALMAO expanded rapidly. Consequently, the management of ALMAO decided to strengthen the structure of the organization and to obtain the legal status of a recognized insurer. As there were no provisions in the insurance law to register a Mutual organization, arrangements were made to set up a registered company to obtain a license to transact insurance business for the SANASA movement. The license was granted by the Insurance Board of Sri Lanka (IBSL) established under the Regulation of Insurance Industry Act No. 42 of 2000.

Initially the SICL was established to operate only the business of Life Insurance. In the year 2005, the company was able to expand its operations covering General Insurance and thus become a composite company.

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