To prevent birds from pecking at sprouting wheat ,farmers tie papre bags on them.
Bayer Foundation and Pula Foundation have announced a partnership to provide insurance coverage for 10 million smallholder farmers by 2030 in Africa.
The initiative is designed to boost climate resilience among farmers, protecting them from the growing risks of droughts and floods, which threaten their harvests, livelihoods, and global food security. This collaboration also seeks to drive public-private partnerships and transform the agricultural insurance market in Africa and Asia.
The Pula Foundation develops scalable, data-driven agricultural insurance solutions to safeguard smallholder farmers’ investments in their farms. By addressing the risks of extreme weather events, the foundation ensures that farmers can receive financial support for crop losses, allowing them to recover, reinvest, and build long-term resilience in an unpredictable climate.
Bayer Foundation would contribute a 10 million euro grant to subsidize insurance premiums, unlocking potential coverage worth 127 million U.S. dollars for farmers in countries including Bangladesh, Pakistan, Malawi, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, and Mali. This funding is part of Bayer’s Social Innovation Ecosystem Fund, which supports high-impact solutions for underserved communities.
Matthias Berninger, Executive Vice President of Public Affairs, Science, and Sustainability at Bayer, and Member of the Board of Trustees at Bayer Foundation, emphasized the urgent need for such initiatives: “Smallholder farmers are already facing severe impacts from climate change, and the situation will worsen in the years ahead. We must empower them to continue feeding their communities and contribute to global food security.”
The partnership builds on the success of a previous project in Zimbabwe. In 2021, Bayer Foundation and Pula Foundation collaborated with the Zimbabwean government to create an insurance solution for farmers involved in the Zimbabwean Conservation Agriculture Program. The program initially covered 31,000 farmers against climate risks like droughts. Within three years, it expanded to insure over 1 million farmers, demonstrating the effectiveness of public-private partnerships in offering insurance at scale.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), around 2.33 billion people worldwide faced moderate or severe food insecurity in 2023. Smallholder farmers play a critical role in food production, contributing more than half of the food consumed in low- and middle-income countries. However, they face significant challenges such as inadequate climate change adaptation tools, limited access to agricultural inputs, and a lack of credit and insurance services.
Rose Goslinga, Director of the Pula Foundation, emphasized the broader benefits of insurance: “Climate resilience is not just about recovery; it’s also about dignity and empowerment. Insurance enables smallholder farmers to prepare for an increasingly volatile climate, rather than waiting for aid. We’ve seen firsthand how farmers bounce back stronger after climate shocks when they have the right tools and support.” She added that this partnership with Bayer Foundation will allow the Pula Foundation to expand its reach and help millions of farmers secure their livelihoods and build resilience against future climate risks.
The collaboration between Bayer Foundation and Pula Foundation represents a major step forward in improving climate resilience and supporting smallholder farmers in Africa and Asia. By providing insurance solutions at scale, the partnership aims to strengthen the agricultural sector and ensure a more secure future for farmers and their communities.
About Bayer and Pula Foundation;
The Bayer Foundation supports emerging scientists, social entrepreneurs, and impact organizations working on innovative solutions at the crossroads of health, food security, and the environment.
Pula is an agricultural insurance and technology company that designs and provides innovative insurance and digital solutions to help smallholder farmers manage yield risks, improve their farming practices, and increase their incomes over time.
