The document, signed by the President of ALASA, Nestor Abatidaga, and the Assistant Deputy Director General of IICA, David Hatch, underlines the desire of both institutions to contribute, through close coordination between the public and private sectors, to the development of agricultural insurance in the Americas.
Founded in 1986, ALASA is a non-profit organization comprised of 23 entities in the Americas and Europe linked to agricultural insurance.
For its part, IICA has a mandate from the Inter-American Board of Agriculture (IABA), issued via a resolution adopted in 2005, to promote and facilitate the systematization and dissemination of successful initiatives related to agricultural insurance and guarantee funds.
Abatidaga and Hatch were two of the experts who took part in the seminar-workshop, the objective of which was to share information and discuss policies and instruments for tackling the growing vulnerability of the agricultural sector to climate change.
After discussing the role of policies for risk management and the promotion of insurance as part of the socioeconomic growth of the agricultural sector, representatives of different international organizations spoke about international cooperation and their experience in developing policies to manage risk and promote agricultural insurance.
The meeting then focused on experiences and possibilities of reinsurance, to provide cover for the agricultural sector, in particular in order to cope with systemic or catastrophic events in a context of increasing unpredictability.
The second part of the activity, which was attended by nearly 300 people, consisted of a workshop on policies and instruments for risk management and agricultural insurance.
Specifically, the focus was on institution building and the requirements for inter-institutional and inter-business cooperation for risk management and agricultural insurance.
The second panel was used to discuss the regulatory framework needed for a system of cover that benefits the public sector, agricultural production and insurance companies.
The participants then focused on the use of information systems to support risk management and agricultural insurance. The meeting concluded with a round table to discuss proposed initiatives and policies for the development of the agricultural insurance market.
The Minister of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries of Uruguay, Ernesto Agazzi, who took part in the inaugural and closing ceremonies of the event, underscored the importance of weather risk management as a tool for private insurers and for the implementation of specific policies on the issue.
The participants in the activity included government agencies involved in the issue, international organizations with experience in promoting and developing risk management tools, insurance and reinsurance companies, and producers’ organizations.
For more information, contact
comunicacion@iica.org.uy