THE Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC), an agency of the Department of Agriculture (DA), said it set a target of P65 billion worth of insurance coverage for two million farmers and fisherfolk this year, with the policies it hopes to write to be worth 30% more compared with 2017.
In 2017, it wrote policies worth P50.03 billion for 1.52 million farmers and fisherfolk who are part of the program.
The PCIC received a subsidy of P3.5 billion in this year’s General Appropriations Act, against P2.5 billion a year earlier.
PCIC President and Chief Executive Officer Jovy C. Bernabe said Tuesday at a news conference that the two million target will include both old and new recipients for free insurance coverage.
“These farmers will not be required to pay a single centavo for their crop insurance coverage. We will be giving it to them for free, courtesy of the P3.5 billion fund given to us in the 2018 budget,” he added.
In 2017, PCIC paid P1.9 billion worth of insurance claims to 175,000 farmers to cover losses from natural calamities, up 24% from 2016.
PCIC Senior Vice-President Norman R. Cajucom said that most of these were directed to corn and rice growers, while fisheries received the least amount of insurance claims. With higher subsidy this year, Mr. Cajucom said that the amount doled out will increase, likewise in the number of recipients.
Mr. Bernabe said that there had been a steady increase of farmers availing of insurance, noting that in 2008, only 50,000 farmers registered for insurance.
The PCIC offers cover for the DA’s lending programs, including the Production Loan Easy Access, the Survival Recovery program, the DA Hybridization and DA-LBP (LandBank of the Philippines) Sikat Saka lending program.
Mr. Bernabe said loan beneficiaries are required to take out crop insurance.
Mr. Cajucom said climate change was also driving increased coverage.
“Because of the continuing negative effects of climate change in the country, there is now a large demand. The market has emerged in the Philippines for [insurance companies with] medium and large agricultural producers [as clients],” he added.
PCIC expanded coverage from rice and corn to high-value crops, livestock and non-crop assets as well. The eligibility of fisherfolk started in 2011.
Mr. Bernabe noted that the Philippines has around nine million farmers.
“No other company offers insurance for crops because it’s very risky. It’s not even lucrative. We just have to expect the private insurance companies to come in and fill in the gap — take another 25% or two million, that will be a big help,” he added.
“PCIC cannot do this alone. Unlike in other countries, there are a lot of companies who offer insurance because they are offered a subsidy by the government.” — Anna Gabriela A. Mogato
