Nairobi Star (Nairobi)
Kiplang’at Kirui
22 December 2011
CIC insurance has denied claims by barley farmers in Narok county that they have not been paid the money with which they insured the crop.
Kenneth Kimani, CIC Insurance Group general manager said the farmers in various parts of the country have been paid Sh40 million in crop losses after prolonged drought.
Speaking to the Star yesterday, Kimani said that a total of 50 farmers have been compensated, 90% of whom are in the Narok region. “A large portion of the amount, Sh32 million, has been paid out to Co-operative Bank under the tripartite agreement that include the Bank, CIC Insurance Group and East Africa Maltings,” Kimani said.
Last week, Narok farmers threatened to dump the crop in favour of maize and wheat. Kimani said that the through the partnership, Co-operative Bank of Kenya has financed inputs for farmers contracted by EAML to grow barley and sorghum countrywide. Kimani said that CIC Insurance has insured the crop to the extent of the value of loaned inputs per acre. “Our pool of funds is adequate to shield farmers in the event of adverse weather. More barley, wheat, maize and sorghum farmers are protecting their crop with our policy as they have realised we can process claims promptly and we have the financial muscle to pay,” Kimani said.
He said that the tripartite scheme presently has over 500 farmers. “This year we have covered a total of over 25,000ha of crop across the country,” Kimani said. He said that in September, the insurance paid out a Sh10 million wheat claim after Wangu Investment in Timau recorded yields lower than the insured amount.
“The farm lost 4,000 bags and the payout represented the loss in cost of production per acre, as a result of drought,” Michael Waigwa, CIC Insurance Agricultural Underwriter said. “The farmer is compensated if eventually he gets less than a set yield trigger, normally between 50% to 70% of normal average yield. This enables the farmer to go back to production the following season,” Waigwa said. “Crop insurance is a must-have for farmers.
Farming is a risky business and you can never count your harvest until it is in the store. If you escape a drought, an excessive rain can ruin your crop at harvest, putting you into misery ” he said. He said that CIC Insurance has bought adequate reinsurance to underwrite individual risks of varying sizes.
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