During the World Economic Forum, the Bayer Foundation and the Pula Foundation announced their ambitious plan to provide insurance coverage for 10 million smallholder farmers by the year 2030. This collaboration is aimed at enhancing climate resilience among smallholder farmers, who are increasingly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change, including droughts and floods. These extreme weather events pose significant threats to their harvests, livelihoods, and overall global food security. The initiative seeks to foster private-public partnerships and reshape the agricultural insurance market across Africa and Asia.
The Pula Foundation has developed scalable, data-driven agricultural insurance solutions specifically designed to protect the investments of smallholder farmers in their agricultural activities. By addressing the risks associated with extreme weather conditions, the Pula Foundation ensures that farmers receive financial compensation for any yield losses they may incur. This support enables farmers to recover from setbacks, reinvest in their operations, and build long-term resilience in the face of climate uncertainties.
To facilitate this initiative, the Bayer Foundation has committed a grant of €10 million to support insurance premiums, which is bolstered by a donation from Bayer’s Crop Science Division. This funding is expected to unlock a potential insurance coverage of approximately $127 million for 10 million farmers in collaboration with national governments in countries such as Bangladesh, Pakistan, Malawi, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, and Mali. The grant is part of Bayer Foundation’s Social Innovation Ecosystem Fund, which focuses on mature and impactful solutions for underserved communities.
Matthias Berninger, Executive Vice President of Public Affairs, Sustainability, and Safety at Bayer, and a member of the Board of Trustees at Bayer Foundation, emphasized the urgency of the initiative, stating, “Smallholder farmers are already heavily impacted by climate change, and this situation is expected to worsen. It is crucial that we empower them to feed their communities and contribute to global food security.”
Rodrigo Santos, President of Bayer’s Crop Science Division and Executive Director of Bayer Foundation, added;
Our Crop Science division is dedicated to delivering innovative, farmer-focused solutions that promote sustainable growth and regenerative agriculture. By unlocking climate finance and collaborating with partners like the Pula Foundation, we aim to implement ecosystem-based approaches that empower smallholder farmers and their communities to overcome challenges and thrive.
The partnership between Pula Foundation and Bayer Foundation has already demonstrated success in 2021, when they collaborated with the Zimbabwean Government as part of the Zimbabwean Conservation Agriculture Program. Together, they developed an insurance solution that protected farmers’ input investments. With the Bayer Foundation’s catalytic support for this pilot program, 31,000 farmers were insured against climate risks such as droughts in the first year. This public-private partnership network was subsequently scaled to cover over 1 million farmers within three years.
Rose Goslinga, Director of Pula Foundation, highlighted the importance of climate resilience, stating;
Climate resilience is not just about recovery; it’s about dignity and empowerment. We believe that insurance enables smallholder farmers to prepare for an increasingly volatile climate, rather than relying on handouts. We have seen firsthand how farmers rebound stronger after climate shocks when they have the right tools and support. This partnership with Bayer Foundation will allow us to expand our reach and ensure that millions more farmers can secure their livelihoods and build resilience against climate risks.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), approximately 2.33 billion people worldwide faced moderate or severe food insecurity in 2023. Smallholder farmers play a crucial role in food security and supply within their countries, producing more than half of the food consumed in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). However, they encounter significant challenges that hinder their ability to serve their communities effectively. These challenges include a lack of climate change adaptation tools, limited access to agricultural inputs, and inadequate credit and insurance services.
Bayer aims to support a total of 100 million smallholder farmers in LMICs by 2030 by improving their access to agricultural products and services. This objective will be achieved through collaborations with various partners. Bayer is committed to creating market models that generate benefits and reduce business risks for all stakeholders in the value chain, including smallholder farmers. This includes facilitating access to the agricultural value chain, enhancing productivity and income for smallholder farmers, and fostering resilience to ensure long-term food security for farmers, their families, and rural communities in LMICs.
