Philippines launches parametric insurance for small fishers

The insurance will provide payouts of up to $100 per policy cycle.

The Philippines has launched its first-ever parametric insurance program for small-scale fishers, a pilot initiative aimed at protecting livelihoods from income losses caused by bad weather.

The project is a collaboration between the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC), global conservation group Rare, and Willis, a WTW business. 

It is supported by the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA) with funding from the Governments of Canada and the United Kingdom through the Blue Planet Fund.

Under the pilot, BFAR will serve as the policyholder, offering parametric insurance coverage to 14,200 small-scale fishers across 24 coastal municipalities. 

The insurance will provide payouts of up to $100 per policy cycle to offset income losses caused by adverse weather that prevents fishing. 

BFAR has allocated part of its budget to pay the premiums as part of its fisher registration program, linking coverage with sustainable fishing commitments.

“With over 1.9 million registered small-scale fishers relying on the nearshore for their livelihoods, the impacts of climate change, such as high winds, rough seas and heavy rainfall, pose increasing risks to their safety and income,” said Dr. Christopher Au, head of APAC Climate Risk Centre at Willis.

The insurance is backed by The Natural Disaster Fund, a public-private partnership between the UK and German governments supported by Hannover Re and managed by Global Parametrics, part of CelsiusPro Group. 

The fund provides parametric risk transfer capacity based on a five-day weather index compared with historical data, enabling quick and predictable financial support.