iii-lab 1st National Workshop Nepal
Event report:
The inaugural National Workshop of the 4th iii-lab for Nepal took place in the capital city of Kathmandu on 28-29 February. The workshop was opened by the Executive Director of the Nepal Insurance Authority (NIA), Mr. Raju Raman Paudel, and Ms. Paulina Campos, GIZ Nepal Deputy Country Director.
The workshop was attended by representatives from various stakeholders in the agriculture insurance sector including the regulator, insurance and reinsurance, InsurTech companies, a national farmers’ cooperative, the country's climate and disaster risk reduction and management authority, and international organisations.
During the two-day workshop, the participants engaged in a dynamic exchange of ideas on how climate change impacts agriculture in Nepal and shared approaches that could be used in developing solutions that will address the protection issues of farmers. Parametric insurance was a key topic during the workshop and while Nepal has had experience in parametric agri-insurance, the team believes that there are still a lot of issues to be addressed, including convincing farmers and other stakeholders of its value in providing the needed protection which could lead to a more resilient agriculture sector. It is recognised that the value of parametric insurance is not seen by all, but as a prominent member of the team said, “Cynics are there to give the hurdles; believers will provide the solutions” and the lab team is committed to provide solutions.
As an initial result of the workshop, the team agreed to focus on specific sectors – rice, grains, maize, and other vegetables, to understand the challenges and protection needs for the said sectors. After the workshop, two separate groups will interview farmers, and other stakeholders in the sectors. Further lab meetings will hopefully lead to an agreement on the sector of focus, including the geographical location of the pilot effort.
The workshop was formally closed by the Chairman of the Nepal Insurance Authority, Mr. Surya Prasad Silwal. In his closing remarks, Mr. Silwal thanked A2ii for including Nepal in the 4th edition of the lab and he is confident that the team's output on a parametric agri-insurance product would serve as a model worthy of replication in other agriculture centres of Nepal.
Event announcement:
A2ii will host the first national iii-lab workshop in Nepal on 27-29 February following the first iii-lab 2023/24 national workshop in Senegal. This will be the second iii-lab focused on climate risk resilience and will involve Armenia, Nepal and Senegal. Following national workshops will be held in Armenia on 12-14 March.
