An agricultural insurance policy, which was launched under the auspices of Dr. Fuad bin Jaffer bin Mohammed Al Sajwani, minister of agriculture and fisheries on Monday, will be extended to cover livestock and fishermen later.
The present policy, which is the first phase of the whole programme, is for covering the risks of vegetable farmers in Oman.
And insurance coverage for dates, other crops, livestock and fishermen will be introduced later, said Abdullah bin Salem Al Salmi, executive president of the Capital Market Authority.
Four insurance companies National Life and General Insurance, Dhofar Insurance, Al Madina Takaful and Arabia Falcon Insurance Company are offering insurance cover for farmers and the insurance schemes are reinsured with Oman Reinsurance (Oman Re).
The farmers can insure the cost (of farming) or market price, added Al Salmi, who was talking to journalists after the launch function.
All major risks associated with cultivation, including natural fire and lightning, flood, landslide storm, hailstorm, cyclone, typhoon, tempest and hurricane are covered under the scheme. Further, damage due to pests is covered only when it affects a large area.
Also, losses to farmers due to drought and areas frequently affected by strong winds are not covered under the scheme.
The significance of agricultural sector in the economy has increased in recent years. Many local people are investing in agricultural sector and they need this kind of coverage, said Ahmed Ali Al Mamari, vice president (insurance sector), at the Capital Market Authority.
He said that the vegetable and fruit production in Oman is expanding as per statistics released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. In Oman, he said, there are two types of farmers full time farmers and part-time farmers.
The new technology in farming is going to help farmers to expand cultivation. That is why we need funding for agricultural cultivation and insurance cover for farmers. This will make it easy for farmers to get finance from banks, added Al Mamari.
Al Salmi said that the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and insurance companies have to create awareness about the insurance scheme among farmers in different parts of the country. Earlier, awareness seminars were held across the Sultanate where teams met farmers and held workshops to educate them on the concept and philosophy of agricultural insurance. This will take some time, but there is a potential.
The CMA chief also said that most of the farmers in Oman hold small farm or plot of land, which are privately owned.
Officials from the CMA, the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Oman Reinsurance Company and insurance firms have attended the launch event.