Under the patronage of His Excellency the Prime Minister of Algeria, the 49th African Insurance Organisation (AIO) Conference and Annual General Assembly is set to take place from the 27th to the 31st of May 2023 in Algiers. With the theme "The Contribution of Insurance to Food Security Challenges in Africa," the conference aims to bring together insurance industry experts, policymakers, academics, and stakeholders to delve into the vital role insurance plays in addressing the pressing food security challenges faced in the African continent. 

UNDP’s Insurance and Risk Finance Team is organizing an high-level event at the 49th AIO Conference: Promoting Agriculture Insurance in Africa. The event will bring together agriculture and food security experts, agricultural insurance and reinsurance experts, and other technical experts and aims to promote risk financing in Africa. The Facility has a focus to support climate adaptation efforts for smallholder resilience through the design and implementation of agriculture insurance and risk transfer programs through innovative partnerships and catalysing further financing for scale up.  

High-Level Event: Promoting Agriculture Insurance in Africa 

The event will take place on Monday, 29th May 2023 at Hotel El Aurassi Algiers, Algeria starting 9:45 to 11:05h. See below the session programme, including a keynote delivery and a panel discussion:

• Keynote Speaker: Blerta Aliko - Resident Representative - UNDP
• Moderator: Linet Odera, Africa Regional Lead, UNDP's Insurance and Risk Finance Facility
• Speakers:
  • Ewan Wheeler, CEO, ACRE Africa 
  • Thomas Dubecq, Managing Director, Guy Carpenter
  • Mathieu Dubreuil, Lead for Climate & Disaster Risk Financing & Insurance, World Food Programme (WFP)
  • Sarfraz Shah, Chief Insurance Officer, PULA

UNDP/Gates Foundation Partnership in Africa:

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), via its Insurance and Risk Finance Facility (IRFF), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation are partnering to build up climate resilience for smallholder farmers in Africa and Asia. On December 5th 2022, UNDP announced a $14-million grant funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to enhance the financial resilience of smallholder farmers in five countries in Africa and Asia, while also building a global platform that acts as a catalyst for increased collaboration, partnerships and resources.

Under the five-year project, UNDP will drive partnerships to develop agricultural insurance products that help farmers to adapt and build resilience to floods, droughts, storms, pests and disease outbreaks, all of which are exacerbated by climate change. Learn more in the partnership factsheet here.

Background:

The African Insurance Organisation (AIO) was established in 1972 as an international organization recognized by many African governments and is headquartered in Douala Cameroon. To date, AIO has 362 members: 340 from 48 of the 54 African countries and 22 associate members from 10 overseas countries. Membership is open to the following: (Re)insurance companies and brokers, regulatory/supervisory authorities, insurance training centres, national and regional insurance associations, and other Insurance-related institutions.