FAO Report on Fisheries, Aquaculture Insurance

April 30, 2022

FAO ‘World Review of Capture Fisheries and Aquaculture Insurance 2022’ has recommended that private and public insurance service providers work together as there is low penetration of insurance products in the fisheries sector. The service providers must also take proactive measures to help the aquaculture and fisheries insurance market of India recover.

Overview:

This Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report presents findings of five regional and four national reports.
The regional zones are Asia, Europe, Africa, Oceania, and Latin America and the national reports are of India, China, the United States, and Russia.
The data collection drive for this report was conducted in 2020.

Indian scenario according to the report

In the Indian aquaculture and fisheries sector there is low penetration of insurance products.
The report has recommended a collaboration among the private and public insurance services of the country to recover this sector.
The Indian national report was authored by Shinoj Parappurathu who is a senior scientist at the Indian Council of Agricultural Research-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (ICAR-CMFRI) Kochi, Kerala.
The aquaculture units, fishing vessels, and coastal immovable property of the nation have abysmal insurance coverage.

Reasons for low insurance coverage

The asset insurance and fishing vessels in the coastal region have a high cost for insurance policies and this is affecting insurance coverage as people are not willing to invest that amount. Also, the premiums in this sector cannot be paid in installments. Along with this the aquaculture farmers and fishermen are mostly unaware of available insurance options.

Need for insurance coverage

There is a need for increased insurance coverage as climate change is causing extreme weather events that are resulting in the rise in occupational hazards to the fish farmers and the fishermen’s property and lives. Hence, it is of utmost importance that the insurance service providers improve this sector’s overall efficiency and competitiveness, and develop strategies to protect the small-scale fishermen from various occupational hazards. Also, payment of premiums in installments must be introduced so that the fishermen are able to afford insurance packages.

Current global scenario

In 2020, the number of aquaculture insurance policies that were in effect was around just over 40,000 across the globe worldwide with Indonesia and China being the largest markets in this insurance sector. 61 percent of the insured fishing vessels are in Asia, which is followed by the Americas (18 percent), Europe (14 percent), and Africa (6 percent). Around 67, 800 large-scale industrial fishing vessels across the world are covered by marine hull insurance. Out of around 430 000 semi-industrial fishing vessels, 50 to 60 percent are also covered by marine hull insurance. Of the 2.3 million motorized small-scale fishing vessels more than 95 percent among these are operating uninsured.

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