National

138,000 Kenyan pastoralists register for livestock insurance

A livestock restocking exercise in Samburu County. (Photo: File/ Issa Hussein)

By Barack Oduor | Tuesday, May 7, 2024

They will have quick access to money in the form of insurance payouts or savings during droughts, famines and related calamities.

More than 138,000 pastoralists have registered to insure their livestock from natural calamities such as drought and famine, a sign that the policy is gaining their acceptance.

The programme by the government, the World Bank, and the insurance firm ZEP-RE aims to strengthen aid to pastoralists through quick access to money in the form of insurance payouts or savings during droughts, famines and related calamities.

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The five-year De-Risking, Inclusion, and Value Enhancement of Pastoral Economies (DRIVE) initiative was launched following devastating droughts experienced every year. In 2020, for instance, a record 2.5 million livestock were reported to have died, leaving farmers dejected and poorer.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture, and Livestock Development said farmers who have signed up for the insurance have tapped into more than Sh2.7 billion worth of benefits in the form of claim payouts and government insurance subsidies.

"Drive's incentives, which have so far reached over 138,000 pastoralists in 12 counties with insurance and saving incentives, have had over Sh2.7 billion in benefits transferred to pastoralists," the ministry led by Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi said.

The World Bank notes that when pastoralists know they are protected by a financial package, they invest in their herds, increasing quality instead of focusing largely on quantity.

The global financial body explained that the project aims to support private investment in the livestock value chain so that exporters or processors can source directly from pastoralists rather than go through multiple intermediaries.

According to partners in the initiative, this is not a one-off solution but the foundation of a permanent mechanism that can expand to other countries, including South Sudan, Uganda, parts of southern Africa, and the Sahel in West and Central Africa.

"It emphasises financial, gender and youth inclusion; private capital mobilisation, and regionalism and trade. Women already make up about 50 per cent of its participants—60 per cent in Somalia," said Hope Murera, managing director and chief executive of ZEP-RE, which manages the regional distribution of the financial package to pastoralists.