BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb.1
By Tamilla Mammadova – Trend:
In 2019, the number of beneficiaries of the Agricultural Crop Insurance Project (Agroinsurance) in Georgia increased by 31 percent compared to 2018, said Georgian Minister of Environment Protection and Agriculture Levan Davitashvili, Trend reports citing the Georgian media.
According to Davitashvili, until 2014, Georgian farmers did not have a mechanism to protect their crops and orchards from climatic risks.
“With the advent of the Agricultural Crop Insurance Project, insurance has become available to farmers who have small farms and most of whom need government support. The agricultural insurance program is a tool that makes agriculture more predictable and more attractive for those who are interested in the sector," the minister said.
Davitashvili explained that the ministry is working with state insurance bodies to create a long-term strategy for the Agricultural Crop Insurance Project and ensure its functioning.
According to him, the number of farmers participating in the program is increasing from year to year.
"In 2019, under the agricultural insurance program, 16,400 policies were issued. The state subsidy amounted to 5.84 million lari (over $2 million). Farmers received 913,000 lari ($316,640) in compensation," Davitashvili said.
In 2014, the Government of Georgia initiated the Agricultural Crop Insurance (Agroinsurance) Project. The aim of the program is to support the development of the agricultural insurance market to minimize production risks and thus stabilize farmers’ income, encourage investment, and increase agricultural production.
Within this project, insurance packages cover losses caused by weather-related disasters such as hail, flooding, and storms, as well as by autumn frost (though only for citrus). Farmers are granted the opportunity to insure a maximum of 5 hectares of land of crops other than grains. For grain, insurance is available for a maximum of 30 hectares of land. In the case of agricultural cooperatives, the maximum insured sum is 50,000 lari ($17,340), but the area of insured land is not limited.
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