How Agricultural Insurance Program Works in Georgia?

Lado Bitchashvili, Shida Kartli 

For the past two months Shida Kartli region was hailed 6 times. Representative of the Ministry of Agriculture in the region Mamuka Lomsadze said the local population has lost almost 80% of their harvest. As locals say, regardless the huge damage, the state assisted farmers only with pesticides and chemicals. The local and central governmental officials suggested them to join agricultural insurance program. The officials claimed the insurance companies will reimburse 100% of their damage. 

The agricultural insurance has the following requirement – the farmer pays 20% for the registered land and the state covers the rest 80%; if the land is not registered, the farmer will have to pay 10% more. 

Majority of the harvest was devastated in Ditsi village of Gori municipality. Locals said the Gori district administration has not yet sent damage evaluation commission to their village. Another problem is insured harvest – the private companies did not adequately evaluate the damage as the locals claimed in Ditsi.

“We have problems regardless the fact the harvest is insured or not. Some peasants had insured their harvest in the village but the insurance companies wrote that only 25% of their harvest was damaged instead the real 80%. We request that the state also participated in the evaluation process. Unfortunately, our doubts about the insurance came true; that’s why majority of us did not insure the lands,” local Besik Maisuradze said.

The victims of the natural disaster from Ditsi village applied to the Gori office of Human Rights Center for help. The lawyer of Human Rights Center Aleksi Merebashvili addressed the Gori district administration and requested to respond to the petitions of the victimized population.

Gori district governor said the local budget does not envisage funds for the reimbursement of the natural disaster damage. As for the damage evaluation commission, Davit Oniashvili said the representative of the Agricultural Ministry will also participate in the evaluation process conducted by the private insurance company.

Mamuka Lomsadze, representative of the Ministry of Agriculture in the Shida Kartli region, also confirmed that there are some faults in the agriculture insurance programs. 

“There are some miscarriages which will be eradicated and the program will become more relevant to the needs of the farmers and the insurance companies,” Lomsadze said.

He added that last year people complained about the private insurance companies but after the interference of the state the problem was resolved. Lomsadze suggests farmers to learn the conditions of the insurance companies before signing the contracts with them.