Over 14,200 small-scale fishers, across 24 coastal municipalities in the Philippines will soon be covered through country's first parametric insurance solution for small scale fishermen. The cover will mitigate income losses resulting from adverse weather conditions that prevent safe fishing in nearshore waters.
The scheme has been launched by the Government of Philippines, through the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) and the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC), in partnership with global conservation organisation Rare and Willis.
This project has been developed through support from the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA) with funding from the Government of Canada and the UK Government’s Blue Planet Fund.
With changing weather patterns, protecting the livelihoods of small-scale fishers is a national priority for the Government of the Philippines.
BFAR will serve as the policyholder for the pilot, offering parametric insurance coverage to small-scale fishers as a benefit for fisher registration and commitment to sustainable fishing practices. It has allocated a portion of its budget to fund the premium costs for this pilot, demonstrating strong government support for innovative approaches to climate risk. The coverage will provide up to $100 per policy cycle to help offset income loss from dangerous weather.
BFAR leader of technical working group Roy Ortega said, “This is not just insurance, it is an investment in our fishers. We are protecting those who protect our seas.”
Willis head of APAC Climate Risk Centre Dr Christopher Au said, “The new insurance solution, the first of its kind in the Philippines, uses a weather index based on wind speed, sea state and rainfall to determine payout eligibility, ensuring timely and direct compensation to fishers when fishing days are lost.”
“With over 1.9m registered small-scale fishers relying on the nearshore for their livelihoods, the impacts of climate change, such as high winds, rough seas and heavy rainfall, pose increasing risks to their safety and income. The new insurance solution, the first of its kind in the Philippines, uses a weather index based on wind speed, sea state and rainfall to determine payout eligibility, ensuring timely and direct compensation to fishers when fishing days are lost.”
The parametric risk transfer capacity is provided by The Natural Disaster Fund, a public-private partnership between the UK and German Governments and supported by Hannover Re and managed by the team from Global Parametrics Limited (a subsidiary of CelsiusPro Group specialising in parametric protection against climate and natural disaster risks).
Rare CEO Brett Jenks said, “Bad weather can cause serious hardship for fishing households throughout the tropics. This pilot takes a proven product - parametric insurance - and applies it to a new context, insuring people rather than assets. The result will be less financial pressure on households, less fishing pressure on ecosystems, and more resilient coastal communities.”