Farmers across the Sultanate can heave a sigh of relief as their produce will come under a risk cover. The Capital Market Authority is all set to launch the agricultural insurance policy, which has been in demand for quite some time. The launch on Monday will be under the auspices of Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries Dr Fu’ad Bin Ja’afar Al Sajwani in the presence of representatives of stakeholders, including insurance companies. The policy is aimed at providing a safe investment environment for agriculture and animal husbandry by providing insurance cover to farmers against risks. This should contribute to their succeeding in maintaining higher levels of production. The CMA, the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Oman Reinsurance Company and Oman Insurance Society have made detailed studies on the prospects of launching agriculture and animal husbandry insurance. They have identified the different levels of suitable coverage. They also highlighted the needed tools and expertise and made recommendations for introducing the schemes. There has been a lot of background work done though meetings with farmers. Awareness seminars were held across the Sultanate where teams met farmers and held workshops to educate them on the concept and philosophy of agricultural insurance. They also emphasised the provision of insurance coverage of the risks the agricultural produce and their animals are exposed to. The workshops also explained to them the proposed underwriting mechanisms. Many farmers’ associations had during such meetings complained that their members were not covered for crop damage. Also, insurance companies did not see it as a profitable sector, they said. Source - http://omantribune.com