(FINACTU) - Following an international call for tenders, FINACTU has just been selected (October 2017) to support the Ministry of Agriculture, Maritime Fisheries, Rural Development and Water & Forests in setting up and monitoring parametric insurance against the consequences of drought at the national level. This mission complements FINACTU's track-record in the implementation of agricultural insurance solutions, in Africa in general, and in Morocco in particular, where FINACTU has already supported the Ministry twice (2010 and 2015).

Given its geographical position, Morocco has always been subject to climatic hazards, particularly drought. If the major crops (wheat, barley, etc.) have been insured since 2010 (multi-risk climate policy, managed by MAMDA), protection of livestock, other crops and rural populations (water supply) each dry year makes up very large direct aid budgets. The government would like to smooth the impact of these budgets on public finances by subscribing to insurance policy directly and for its own account with the community of insurers / reinsurers. The compensation paid will come to finance the various programs to combat the effects of drought (with the exception of the multi-climatic risk ensuring cereals, which already covers more than one million hectares).

For this first government insurance experiment on the continent, the Moroccan Government has chosen a parametric trigger (index-based insurance).

The mission of FINACTU is to specify the technical outlines of the product, then to organize the international tender that will select the risk-taker and finally, to monitor the implementation of this insurance.

The Department's objective is to launch the call for tenders during the first half of 2018 in order to purchase the guarantee for the coming 2018-2019 agricultural season.