Kshema General Insurance to receive $20 million capital infusion from GCF

The Board of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) approved a capital infusion of $20 million into Kshema General Insurance, the insurer said on Monday. The capital will be used to scale up financial resilience among small and marginal farmers and their families, who constitute 86 per cent of India’s farmers, against climate change vulnerabilities.

 

The capital received will be utilised to expand Kshema’s offerings to reach a wider number of uninsured farmers and their crops, strengthening its underwriting capacity. It will also be used to enhance Kshema’s technological platform — the Kshema Cognitive Engine — to offer not only curated insurance solutions to rural India but also provide services such as weather alerts and proactive information on crop health, apart from promoting sustainable agricultural practices.

 

 

Commenting on this development, Natraj Nukala, founder, Kshema General Insurance Limited, said, “We are grateful to the board of GCF for seeing the value of our proposal in the context of adaptation to climate change. I also thank the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and the empowered committee members representing other relevant authorities, along with the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development, for their continuous guidance and support.”

 

The support from GCF boosts Kshema’s endeavour to follow the government and the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India’s (IRDAI’s) recent policy directions to expand insurance access across Tier-II and Tier-III towns and complements national efforts to achieve ‘Insurance for All’ by 2047. 

 

Kavita Sinha, director, Green Climate Fund’s Department of the Private Sector Facility, said, “‘Harnessing Insurance for Climate Resilience in Indian Agriculture’ is a landmark for GCF — it is GCF’s first investment to support an innovative microinsurance solution enabling provision of crop insurance against climate vulnerability for smallholder and marginal farmers. This comprehensive solution includes early warning and capacity building of vulnerable farmers for sustainable agricultural practices.”

 

“By partnering with national institutions to deploy innovative insurance solutions, GCF is helping protect rural livelihoods from climate shocks while promoting more sustainable and resilient agricultural systems,” Sinha said.