Key points
- Guinea Insurance has insured about 50 farmer groups, including agritech firms, within six months.
- The insurer says demand is rising as farmers seek protection against floods, drought, diseases and other production risks.
- Smallholder farmers stand to benefit most because of their greater exposure to risks and limited access to finance.
Main story
Farmers are increasingly adopting agricultural insurance to protect their investments against climate-related risks, with Guinea Insurance Plc saying it has insured about 50 farmer groups, including agritech firms, within the past six months.
The company’s Managing Director, Ademola Abidogun, said demand has grown since its Agricultural Insurance Desk became fully operational in 2023, with coverage now extending to crop, poultry, livestock, fishery and farm property owners.
He said smallholder farmers remain the biggest beneficiaries because they are more exposed to production risks and often lack the financial resources to recover from losses.
To improve adoption, the insurer has expanded awareness campaigns through agritech partners and community engagements, particularly in rural areas. According to Abidogun, recent sensitisation programmes have encouraged more farmers to purchase insurance against risks such as floods, drought, pests, diseases and fire.
He also dismissed the perception that insurers fail to honour genuine claims, saying verified agricultural insurance claims are paid within one week after field assessments and completion of documentation.
The issues
Climate change, extreme weather events and production risks continue to threaten agricultural output in Nigeria. Despite these challenges, agricultural insurance penetration remains relatively low because of limited awareness and misconceptions about affordability and claims settlement. Insurers are increasing outreach efforts to encourage more farmers to adopt risk protection.
What’s being said
“Both sets of farmers benefit from our products. However, smallholder farmers benefit more because they are more exposed to risks and their limited access to finance.” — Mr Ademola Abidogun, Managing Director, Guinea Insurance Plc.
“Agricultural insurance helps to de-risk farmers’ investments and provides compensation when unforeseen losses occur.” — Mr Ademola Abidogun.
What’s next
Guinea Insurance plans to deepen awareness campaigns through agritech partnerships and rural engagement programmes to increase agricultural insurance adoption, while expanding coverage across the agricultural value chain.
Bottom line
As climate and production risks intensify, agricultural insurance is becoming an increasingly important tool for protecting farmers’ investments, improving resilience and supporting sustainable agricultural production.
