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2 Million African Farmers Insured For Weather & Catastrophe Risks: Swiss Re

2 Million African Farmers Insured For Weather & Catastrophe Risks: Swiss Re

Published on:
Topics:
Weather index
Country:
Kenya
Rwanda
One of the world’s largest reinsurance firms, Swiss Re, recently announced that two million African smallholder farmers are now protected against drought, floods and other natural perils, thanks to the efforts of the World Bank and Swiss Re Corporate Solutions.Back in 2012, Michel Lies, Swiss Re’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) made a commitment that by 2017 it would protect 1.4 million African smallholder farmers from weather and catastrophe risks, through increased insurance protection. And now the Switzerland-based reinsurer has revealed that not only has the amount of farmers covered
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Partner Profile - MicroEnsure

Partner Profile - MicroEnsure

Content owner:
World Bank Group
Topics:
Weather index
Product distribution
Micro-level
Agriculture in Rwanda accounts for one-third of Rwanda’s GDP; constitutes the main economic activity for rural households (especially women) and remains the main source of income. Today, the agricultural population is estimated to be a little less than 80% of the total population. The sector meets 90% of the national food needs and generates more than 70% of the country’s export revenues. (Source: Rwanda Development Board). Much of the agricultural land is rain-fed, with little or no irrigation available. This is exacerbated by the fact that more than 68% of Rwandan land is on hillsides with a
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IFC, EU and Syngenta Foundation to Expand Weather Insurance to One Million East African Farmers

IFC, EU and Syngenta Foundation to Expand Weather Insurance to One Million East African Farmers

Published on:
Topics:
General
Data
Satellite data
Product design
Weather index
Area yield
Hybrid
Catastrophe weather derivative
Product distribution
Micro-level
Meso-level
Country:
Kenya
Rwanda
Tanzania
GIIF, a member of the World Bank Group, signed two grant agreements, with a combined value of $3.9 million, with the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture to expand index-based insurance to small-scale farmers in Kenya, Rwanda and Tanzania. Index-based weather insurance can protect against the adverse effects of climate change and help to strengthen food security in rural communities.
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R4 Rural Resilience Initiative's Sophia Belay at Climate Risk Forum 2014

Topics:
Data management
Data providers
Premium subsidies
Product design
Weather index
Area yield
Sophia Belay, Manager – R4 Rural Resilience Initiative, talks about increasing awareness of index insurance among farmers
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Turning the tide on rural poverty requires innovative new products

Turning the tide on rural poverty requires innovative new products

Published on:
Topics:
General
Other frameworks
Product design
Weather index
Product distribution
Meso-level
Country:
Rwanda
Fifty-five year old Niyitegeka Veneranda lives in rural Rwanda. She and her husband are parents to seven children and grandparents to five. They farm less than a hectare of their own land, yet she has been able to build a small house, feed her family, and send her last three children to school. She expanded her rice production recently with a loan from a local bank made possible through agricultural insurance, and plans to expand her acreage with another loan next year.
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Automated Weather Stations Drive Groundbreaking Low-cost Micro-insurance Plan for Rwanda’s Farmers

Automated Weather Stations Drive Groundbreaking Low-cost Micro-insurance Plan for Rwanda’s Farmers

Topics:
Data management
Data providers
Legal/Regulatory frameworks
Weather index
Area yield
Hybrid
Product distribution
Meso-level
Country:
Rwanda
As Rwandan farmers face increasingly erratic rainfall, an innovative program launched today will use automated weather stations to offer 20,000 farmers in the Southern and Western provinces of Rwanda low-cost insurance to protect their loans for high-yielding seeds, fertilizers, and other farm inputs.
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Weathering the Risks: Scalable Weather Index Insurance in East Africa

Weathering the Risks: Scalable Weather Index Insurance in East Africa

Topics:
General
Weather index
Product distribution
Having enough food in East Africa depends largely on the productivity of smallholder farms, which in turn depends on farmers’ ability to invest in their farms. Weather insurance can encourage farmers to make these critical investments by improving their access to credit. The Global Index Insurance Facility (GIIF)—an IFC/IBRD collaboration housed under IFC’s Access to Finance’s Global Retail/Microfinance Cluster—is an innovative program that is expanding access to insurance against weather risks and natural disasters to farmers, livestock herders, and others, particularly in Africa and the
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Turning the Tide on Rural Poverty Requires Innovation

Turning the Tide on Rural Poverty Requires Innovation

Topics:
Hybrid
Fifty-five year old Niyitegeka Veneranda lives in rural Rwanda. She and her husband are parents to seven children and grandparents to five. They farm less than a hectare of their own land, yet she has been able to build a small house, feed her family, and send her last three children to school. She expanded her rice production recently with a loan from a local bank made possible through agricultural insurance, and plans to expand her acreage with another loan next year.
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MicroEnsure - Rwanda

Market launch:
Country:
Rwanda
Region:
Sub-Saharan Africa
Agriculture in Rwanda accounts for one-third of Rwanda’s GDP; constitutes the main economic activity for rural households (especially women) and remains the main source of income. Today, the agricultural population is estimated to be a little less than 80% of the total population. The sector meets 90% of the national food needs and generates more than 70% of the country’s export revenues. (Source: Rwanda Development Board). Much of the agricultural land is rainfed, with little or no irrigation available. This is exacerbated by the fact that more than 68% of Rwandan land is on hillsides with a slope greater than 16%. The majority of agricultural activities are by non-commercialized smallholder farmers, with minimal investment leading to reduced yields and continued food insecurity. Commercial banks and microfinance institutions are using weather index insurance as a tool to reduce their portfolio at risk when lending to smallholders. This enables rural investment to increase, which in turns provides higher agricultural outputs leading to higher incomes. In addition, weather index insurance provides a safety net against the effects of adverse weather.
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ACRE/Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture - Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania

Market launch:
Country:
Kenya
Rwanda
Tanzania
Region:
Sub-Saharan Africa
ACRE Africa (formerly the Kilimo Salama project of the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture) is having an active project in Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania. The largest private sector index-based insurance program in Kenya and Africa develops and offers insurance for African farmers (smallholder to large-scale commercial farmers) so that they can feel confident investing in their farms and feed their communities. The initiative has designed insurance products to cover a variety of crops against drought, erratic rain, and disease. is an insurance initiative of the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture. It develops and offers insurance for African farmers (smallholder to large-scale commercial farmers) so that they can feel confident investing in their farms and feed their communities. The initiative has designed insurance products to cover a variety of crops against drought, erratic rain, and disease.
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