CCRIF members get EU subsidy to help with 2023 premiums

The CCRIF SPC (formerly known as the Caribbean Catastrophic Risk Insurance Facility), has announced a further US $4.7 million in funding from the European Union which will help to subsidise the parametric disaster insurance of its member countries through the 2023 policy year.

With the latest US $4.7 million to support the 12 ODA-eligible Caribbean members of CCRIF, the European Union (EU) aims to help them access parametric tropical cyclone and excess rainfall protection, through subsidising the premiums on the parametric insurance policies.

The new funding was provided through a programme administered by the World Bank, and helped CCRIF to provide discounts of approximately 14% on the gross premium of members’ parametric tropical cyclone and excess rainfall policies.

The EU funds also support technical assistance oriented towards ensuring the sustainability of climate and disaster risk insurance in the years to come, the CCRIF explained.

The EU has been one of the CCRIF’s main development partners since it launched back in 2007, providing more than €45 million in contributions since then.

The Eu has contributed to the initial capitalisation of the CCRIF, the entry of new countries to the risk pool and the development of new parametric insurance products, while several CCRIF members have also used the access to funding to help them increase their parametric disaster insurance coverage.

CCRIF CEO, Isaac Anthony commented, “The success of CCRIF is undoubtedly due in part to the support – both technical and financial – that we receive from our development partners. This support from the EU continues to be key to allowing us to meet the needs of our current and potential members. It allows us to make available more affordable insurance coverage to our members, to improve the long-term sustainability of CCRIF, and to develop new products for additional perils and sectors.”

Malgorzata Wasilewska, Head of the EU Delegation to Barbados, the Eastern Caribbean States, the OECS and CARICOM/CARIFORUM, added, “The renewal of countries’ catastrophe risk insurance policies at this time signals the growing strategic importance placed on disaster risk financing as key to advancing sustainable development prospects in the context of shrinking fiscal space. We are proud to say that the EU contribution supported important milestones in this regard.

“Recent and past support from the EU to CCRIF was adequate to ease payment of member countries’ premiums and improve their risk coverage against natural hazards. However, the global context calls for constant search for innovative solutions to allow the successful facility to grow accordingly. The EU is partnering with CCRIF to focus on self- sustainable mechanisms allowing for progress in the region, while keeping this valuable tool at the service of the countries.”

CCRIF continues to expand its product set, with new parametric insurance initiatives such as the COAST and electrical utilities products still rolling out to members.

In addition, CCRIF plans further parametric product development, including a new product for water utility companies in partnership with the Inter-American Development Bank and a parametric rainfall runoff product, initially for Guyana and Suriname.

CCRIF estimates that more than 3.5 million people in the Caribbean and Central America have benefitted directly or indirectly from payouts of its parametric insurance policies, which now total US $261.4 million since its inception and number 59 payouts across 16 member governments, all made within 14 days of an event triggering the policies.