The Marsabit district in rugged northern Kenya is the size of Ireland. It has ten tribes and seven languages but only 160,000 people. The manager of the local branch of Equity Bank says it takes two crunching days of driving his jeep through burning deserts to reach some of his customers. Marsabit depends on cattle, … Continue reading
It’s all about the customer right now. The insurance sector is grappling with the same sorts of cost pressures evident in other industries, and “outsourcing is a trend” among most players, says Haydn Pinnell, MD of Gallium. …The insurance sector in Africa only represented about 1.3 percent of the global insurance business in 2007, according to … Continue reading
ONE of the things holding back agriculture in developing countries is the unwillingness of farmers with small plots of land to invest in better seed and fertiliser. Only half of Kenyan farmers buy improved seed or spend money on other inputs. Many use poor-quality seed kept from previous harvests. That is understandable when drought or … Continue reading
In the arid, dusty Marsabit region of northern Kenya, most people rely on livestock — for food, milk and income — to survive. So when a drought hits the already desertlike area and plants and animals begin to die, the entire population is at risk of famine. And because northern Kenya experiences drought about every … Continue reading
Dusty northern Kenya doesn’t look like a laboratory, but across its dry plains, cattle herders are pioneering a new way to fend off poverty and teaming up with unlikely partners – insurance agents. The two groups have been brought together by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), headquartered in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. A few years … Continue reading
Kleinbauern in Afrika können ihr Vieh neuerdings gegen Dürren versichern Der Marsabit-Distrikt in Kenia ist nicht unbedingt eine Touristengegend. Es gibt zwar um den verloschenen Vulkan gleichen Namens herum einen Nationalpark mit Löwen, Leoparden, Zebras und Elefanten. Aber das Tiefland am Ufer des Turkana-Sees und an der Grenze zu Äthiopien ist eintönig und flach, steinig … Continue reading
The droughts in the Turkana region were less severe when she was growing up, says Laura Letapalel, and pastoralists could still find some grass and water for their animals. Now, she laments, the droughts are longer and there is nothing to eat. Andrew Mude, an economist with the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), says drought … Continue reading
Livestock farmers in North Eastern Kenya will be compensated against loss of their animals from drought following the launch of an insurance product targeting the sector. The compensation will ensure that pastoralists do not suffer losses when their livestock die from drought, disease or flooding. Read more … (Kenya Broadcasting Corporation) Continue reading
Agriculture insurance has finally been launched for the first time in Botswana with the facilitation of the Agricultural Hub, as the sector tries to move towards full commercialisation. This week, Agrinsure Botswana a joint venture effort between South Africa’s Farmers Technical Insurance Services Company (FTISC) and Alexandra Forbes Botswana, was officially unveiled to stakeholders in … Continue reading
Equity Bank Ltd. and UAP Insurance Ltd. will insure livestock in northern Kenya against starvation and are offering the first African insurance program that will use satellite images to predict drought. The index-based product will initially be sold to herders of camels, cows, goats and sheep in Kenya’s arid Marsabit district, the Nairobi, Kenya-based International … Continue reading
ILRI Clippings 