Insurers urged to customise livestock policies

Most underwriters are yet to simplify livestock insurance policies, deterring farmers from insuring their animals from drought. 

"The reason why most farmers are not insuring their livestock is that companies have not yet simplified the insurance policy," CIC chief executive Tom Gitogo said. 

Speaking in Kiambu while launching the firm's Ngombe Bima insurance product  Gitogo said the firm had listened to herders to develop a policy that could incorporate even a single farm animal.

He called upon livestock farmers to purchase policies for their animals which are their main source of livelihood.

“The company has not yet started reaping fruits from the Ngombe Bima insurance since it is in implementation stage but since we piloted the product a year ago in Kiambu county we have seen more than 5,000 farmers applying and we have compensated some claims,” he said.

The Index-Based Livestock Insurance (IBLI) relies on satellite-based indicators and is designed to trigger payouts to insured pastoralists before droughts become severe.

This enables them to purchase fodder, feed supplements, water and vaccines to keep their herds alive until grazing conditions return to normal.

IBLI and Takaful (IBLT) products have been commercially sold in Kenya since 2010 by various insurance firms with support by the International Livestock and Research Institute (ILRI) and its academic and development partners.

The insurance scheme was scaled-up in Kenya in 2015 through a state-led Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) with support from ILRI and the World Bank.

The scheme– Kenya Livestock Insurance Programme (KLIP) — currently covers eight counties and about 20,000 households.