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Kenya: Press Releases: CIC Insurance Pays KES9.8m Crop Insurance Claim |
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Tuesday, 13 September 2011 |
Nairobi, 9 September 2011 --- CIC Insurance Group has paid out the first crop insurance claim worth KES9.8m under a partnership with the Co-operative Bank of Kenya to finance and insure crops for farmers taking loans from the bank.
The insurer paid out the wheat claim after Wangu Investment Ltd situated in Timau recorded yields lower than the insured amount of 6.5 bags per acre. “The farm lost 4,000 bags and the payout represents the loss in cost of production per acre, as a result of drought” said Michael Waigwa, the CIC Insurance Agricultural Underwriter.
The management of the farm which lies on a 10,000 acres land decided to take up crop insurance after losing 80% of its crop owing to a drought spell in the previous season.
“We produce 10,000 bags of wheat and 10,000 of barley; and without insurance, a farm like this could incur a loss of over KES20m in one season,” said Dr. Joseph Ndegwa, the General Manager of Wangu Investment Ltd. In the past, explained Dr. Ndegwa, the farm used to register output of 20 bags per acre, but fluctuating rainfall patterns have seen production dwindle to two bags per acre in some parts of the farm.
According to Mr. Waigwa, farmers should always consider crop insurance as a necessary cost of production, in the same way they would incur other costs of production such as fertilizer and seed. “Crop insurance helps the farmer to go back to production the following season. With the changing weather patterns, farmers will no longer depend on the stroke of luck to survive. Crop insurance will unlock the agricultural potential in the country as more farmers will go into production as the risk of weather is managed. Banks will also lend more to farmers.” explains Mr. Waigwa. “Insurance has the potential to make Kenya a food self sufficient country in a few years.”
CIC Insurance is the leading agricultural insurer in the country. The company has insured various crops spread across Kenya, but mainly in lower and upper Narok, Timau, Eldoret, and Nakuru areas. Other areas include Kitale, Kinangop, Laikipia and Maralal. “In total, the company has this year insured about 25,000ha of wheat, maize, barley and sorghum, a crop worth more than KES1bn,” said Mr. Waigwa.
The crops have been covered against yield losses as a result of adverse weather perils, such as drought, excessive rains, hail damage and fire. The multi-peril insurance cover involves physical crop inspections and farm visits by CIC agronomists and the crop is insured after satisfactory germination. Farmers are required to plant within a stipulated planting window, as this gives the earliest and the latest planting dates for a given region ensuring that the planted crop will receive enough moisture to achieve good yields.
CIC agronomists will usually do three inspections during the life of the crop: emergence inspection to ascertain germination, mid-season inspection to track the growth of the crop, and pre-harvest inspection to estimate the expected yields. CIC also insures horticulture, floriculture, forests among other agricultural production systems. The company is a leading insurer of livestock.
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