THE PHILIPPINE Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC) and German aid agency Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) signed a memorandum of agreement to launch a mangrove insurance pilot program in the Eastern Visayas GIZ said.
GIZ said the pilot will introduce a risk-financing mechanism to enable rapid funding for mangrove assessment, cleanup, and restoration after climate-related events, particularly typhoons.
“Strong ecosystems are among the most effective forms of natural protection. Protecting mangroves through insurance helps safeguard coastal livelihoods while reducing recovery costs after disaster,” PCIC President Jovy C. Bernabe said at the signing event on Monday.
The PCIC said local government units (LGUs) will be the policyholders of record. They will pay insurance premiums; their indemnities will go towards mangrove restoration.
The PCIC said insurance payouts will be triggered by predefined parameters, particularly typhoon wind speeds or storm surge levels.
“We have indices that will serve as proxies for damage — storm surge wave height, and wind speed. We are looking at 100 kilometers per hour or above (for wind speed),” Israel Q. Dela Cruz, PCIC business development and marketing department manager, said.
The PCIC said the parametric design will hasten indemnity payouts and require fewer administrative costs because it does away with the need for assessments of actual damage.
“We do not need to send our adjuster to the field. Once the indices are triggered or reported by external data providers, such as the (government weather service), we are going to pay the policyholders,” Mr. Dela Cruz said.
The PCIC said product development will take about two to three months and will be followed by simulations in Northern Samar and Southern Leyte.
Mr. Dela Cruz said the product development phase will include studying the appropriate cost of insurance premiums and indemnity.
“Data coming from the LGUs will be taken into consideration, including how much they normally incur for mangrove restoration. That will be the baseline for the cost of indemnities,” he said.
“We have indices that will serve as proxies for damage — storm surge wave height, and wind speed. We are looking at 100 kilometers per hour or above (for wind speed),” Israel Q. Dela Cruz, PCIC business development and marketing department manager, said.
The PCIC said the parametric design will hasten indemnity payouts and require fewer administrative costs because it does away with the need for assessments of actual damage.
“We do not need to send our adjuster to the field. Once the indices are triggered or reported by external data providers, such as the (government weather service), we are going to pay the policyholders,” Mr. Dela Cruz said.
The PCIC said product development will take about two to three months and will be followed by simulations in Northern Samar and Southern Leyte.
Mr. Dela Cruz said the product development phase will include studying the appropriate cost of insurance premiums and indemnity.
“Data coming from the LGUs will be taken into consideration, including how much they normally incur for mangrove restoration. That will be the baseline for the cost of indemnities,” he said.
Source - https://www.bworldonline.com
