NU Online News Service, May 21, 2:37 p.m. EST
Swiss Re is joining a $3 billion commitment between government and the private sector to increase investment in Africa with the aim of creating new business opportunities in agriculture.
The Obama administration announced the launch on Friday of The New Alliance, an effort to "help lift 50 million people out of poverty over the next 10 years."
The plan calls for commitments from African leaders to "drive effective country-led plans and policies for food security and nutrition."
The alliance involves private-sector partners increasing investment "where conditions are right" and commitment of G-8 members to expand Africa's potential for rapid and sustained agricultural growth.
For Swiss Re's part, the company says it will be providing increased insurance capacity to the region for agricultural insurance markets in Benin, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, Zambia "and other interested countries with the collaboration of their governments."
The company says it will invest $2 million a year "to cover farmers' weather and production risks, enable access to finance and help them engage in higher income-generating activities."
"Our interest and engagement in this region is not new," says Michel Liès, Swiss Group chief executive officer, in a statement, "but a defined collaboration with…governments along with other public and private sector stakeholders would really allow us to harness our respective strengths to make a difference."
Swiss Re has had a long-time commitment to microinsurance programs, with the belief that it is a viable business. It believes that it is an underserved market with potential premium of up to $40 billion.
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