Rice crop insurance: Sharing risks with farmers

(Baonghean) - To mitigate risks in agricultural production, the Prime Minister issued Decision 315/QD-TTg on the pilot implementation of agricultural insurance for the period 2011-2013 for three agricultural products: rice, livestock, and aquatic products in 21 provinces and cities.

This is a major government policy aimed at supporting and compensating for financial losses caused by natural disasters and epidemics to agricultural producers, contributing to social security. In Nghe An province, rice crop insurance is being piloted in three districts: Dien Chau, Yen Thanh, and Quynh Luu. The Provincial People's Committee has established a Steering Committee for the pilot agricultural insurance program and directed the pilot districts to establish steering committees at the district and commune levels to coordinate with Bao Viet Nghe An Company (the unit assigned by the Ministry of Finance to implement the pilot program).

By insuring their rice crops, farmers can invest in production with peace of mind.
Photo: Xuan Hoang

After a period of implementation, on March 1, 2012 (exactly one year since the Prime Minister signed Decision 315/QD-TTg), the Provincial Steering Committee for the Agricultural Insurance Pilot Program, in coordination with the People's Committee of Yen Thanh district, organized the signing ceremony for the 2012 winter-spring rice crop insurance contract in Long Thanh commune.

At the ceremony, farmers in Long Thanh commune were presented with "Rice Crop Insurance Certificates". Mr. Nguyen Dinh Khuan happily said: "Rice farming is full of risks. After planting the rice, we worry about floods, droughts, and diseases. There have even been years when the rice was almost ripe, but floods came and destroyed everything. Now, with rice crop insurance, we farmers can rest assured and invest in production, because the State has shared the losses from previous harvests." Mr. Thai Van Nhan, head of Van Trai hamlet, said: "The hamlet has 165 households, and 100% of them participate in rice crop insurance. We are very happy because poor households receive 100% support from the State for the rice crop insurance premium. The hamlet, which has always been poor, now has less to worry about when the flood season comes."

Mr. Nguyen Van Duong, Deputy Head of the Agriculture Department of Yen Thanh District, shared: Yen Thanh has over 18,000 hectares of agricultural land, of which over 5,000 hectares of rice fields are frequently flooded and urgently need to participate in insurance. Thanks to the efforts of the Steering Committees at all levels, Yen Thanh now has 7,060 households participating in rice crop insurance, mainly poor and near-poor households (accounting for over 15% of the total participating households).

However, some people do not fully understand the policy of rice crop insurance and there are still some difficulties in the process of compensating for losses. For example, Ms. Tran Thi Nga from Nam Thanh, Yen Thanh district, explained: "We want to be compensated for the losses on the rice fields we incur, but currently, the insurance company calculates the total loss for the entire commune and only compensates if the yield decreases. However, my family will still participate in the insurance for 6 acres of rice fields, because Nam Thanh is prone to floods, so if the whole commune is affected, my family will still have a chance to be compensated."

We visited Dien Lam commune in Dien Chau district and witnessed the villagers eagerly gathering to complete the rice crop insurance procedures at the Nam Lam and Bac Lam cooperatives. Mr. Dau Xuan Huong, Chairman of the Dien Lam Commune People's Committee, shared: "Dien Lam has 3,150 households cultivating over 600 hectares of rice. To date, over 60% of the rice crop insurance procedures have been completed. The commune-level steering committee is continuing to promote and encourage non-poor households to participate." Ms. Hoang Thi Huong, Vice Chairman of the Dien Chau District People's Committee, stated: "Currently, over 90% of the communes in Dien Chau are implementing rice crop insurance procedures. The district and commune-level steering committees are actively promoting the program to encourage non-poor households to participate."

According to Mr. Phan Ba ​​Trung, Director of Bao Viet Nghe An Company, agricultural insurance is a relatively new field, so the implementation process has encountered many difficulties. The company has coordinated with steering committees at all levels and localities to promote propaganda work to answer farmers' questions related to rice crop insurance, such as: the State's policy on insurance premium support, guidance and assistance to steering committees at all levels in organizing for households to understand and calculate the remaining insurance premiums they have to pay based on the rice area, the types of natural disasters and diseases covered by insurance, etc. The company has developed software to serve statistics and printing, and has printed insurance certificates for 20,668 rice-growing households.

To date, among the 21 provinces and cities nationwide authorized by the Government to pilot agricultural insurance, Nghe An province leads in terms of results, quality, and implementation progress. In the future, the company will propose to the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, and the Central Steering Committee for the Agricultural Insurance Pilot Program to finalize documents, forms, software, policy mechanisms, remuneration, and conduct further research to expand the scope of insurance coverage, etc., to better serve the interests of farmers and the entire apparatus at all levels involved in the program's implementation."

Van Truong