Insurance Revolution: Land Tenure Security Innovations for Agriculture in Africa

Africa’s agricultural sector serves as the backbone of its economy. Agriculture employs 65–70 percent of the workforce, supports the livelihoods of 90 percent of Africa’s population, and contributes a quarter of the continent’s GDP.

Agriculture is also highly vulnerable to challenges associated with unpredictable weather, pests, market volatility and land tenure insecurity. While agricultural insurance is a proven tool for mitigating many of these risks, its adoption across the continent remains low. For millions of farmers, particularly smallholders, the barriers to accessing insurance are formidable, rooted in both structural and logistical challenges. However, the intersection of geo-spatial technology and secure land tenure offers a transformative solution, promising to revolutionize agricultural insurance and unlock its full potential for Africa’s farmers.

Secure land tenure is the bedrock of agricultural development. It provides farmers with legal recognition of their rights to the land they cultivate and enables them to invest in long-term productivity and sustainability. Over 70 percent of land across Africa is held under customary systems, often unregistered and undocumented. This can leave farmers vulnerable to disputes, displacement, and limited access to essential services such as credit and insurance.

The formalization of land tenure through registration is a critical step to address these vulnerabilities, explained Wambayi Wabwire, working with the Cadasta Foundation based in Kenya. When integrated with geo-spatial technology, it offers new pathways to precision, accessibility, and sustainability in agricultural insurance.

One of the greatest challenges for insurers in Africa is the accurate assessment of risks asserts Dogo Singh, Principal of Insurance/Manager Insurance with Stanbic Bank in Uganda.  Traditional methods rely on generalized models that fail to capture the specific conditions of individual farms. This leads to inflated premiums and coverage gaps making insurance unaffordable and unattractive to many farmers. Geo-spatial technology has changed this dynamic. By mapping and analyzing farm locations, soil quality, weather patterns and land use, insurers can develop highly detailed risk profiles.

These profiles enable the design of location-specific insurance products such as drought insurance for semi-arid regions or pest-specific coverage for coffee and cocoa farms. This precision lowers costs for insurers and ensures that pay fairer premiums, increasing adoption rates.

Claims verification is another major hurdle in agricultural insurance. Traditional systems struggle with delays, disputes, and fraudulent claims due to challenges verifying losses. Remote sensing geo-spatial tools, including satellite imagery and drones, have revolutionized this process, explains Frank Pichel, head of Global Field Operations at PLACE. These technologies allow real-time monitoring of farm conditions and providing clear evidence of events including droughts, floods and pest outbreaks.

If a coffee farmer insured against drought suffers yield losses, satellite data showing below-average rainfall in the region can serve as instant verification. This automation speeds up the processing of claims, reduces administrative burdens, and builds trust between farmers and insurers—trust that is essential for widespread adoption.

Secure land tenure also plays a critical role in unlocking financial inclusion. Farmers with formalized land rights can use their land as collateral to gain access to credit and other financial services. Geo-spatial technology enhances this process by providing clear, indisputable land boundaries and ownership records. This data creates a reliable baseline for assessing the viability of offering coverage for insurers.

Bundling insurance with credit or input financing becomes a natural next step, allowing farmers to invest in improved seeds, fertilizers and irrigation systems suggests Country Lead at PULA Ivan Mugeere in Uganda. The integration creates a virtuous cycle of productivity, resilience, and economic empowerment.

Climate change is among the most pressing challenges facing Africa’s agricultural sector. Rising temperatures, erratic rainfall, and extreme weather events threaten the livelihoods of millions of farmers. Geo-spatial technology offers a way to mitigate these risks by mapping climate-vulnerable areas and designing targeted insurance products.

Weather-indexed insurance uses satellite-recorded rainfall data, explained Dr. Phumudzo Tharaga, agro-meterorologist at the Agricultural Research Council, former agro-meteorology professor at UFS, crop insurance specialist at Lionhortic Consulting, and board member at the South African Weather Service. This information can be used to trigger payouts automatically, ensuring farmers receive compensation without the need for lengthy claims processes. Geo-spatial tools can support sustainable practices such as agroforestry by identifying suitable areas for planting trees that improve soil health and mitigate drought risks. Farmers can be incentivized to adopt these practices through reduced premiums or additional income from carbon credit schemes.

The integration of geo-spatial technology with secure land tenure aligns with the growing demand for traceability and sustainability in global agricultural markets. Regulations such as the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) require agricultural products to be verified as deforestation-free to access international markets. Compliance with such standards is becoming a prerequisite for Africa’s cash crop sectors, including coffee and cocoa, states Agri-Business Senior Advisor Yacouba Penissongui Coulibaly, working with TechnoServe in Côte d’Ivoire.

Geo-spatial tools can provide an auditable record that farms are located outside protected areas or forest reserves. Linked with land registration systems, these systems provide the documentation necessary to meet these stringent requirements. Farmers with verified, compliant land can gain access to premium markets, while insurers benefit from reduced reputational and regulatory risks.

Smallholder farmers, who form the majority of Africa’s agricultural workforce, stand to gain the most from these innovations. Nonetheless, they are the most underserved by traditional financial and insurance systems. Development in geo-spatial technology and land tenure registration provide ways to change this. Mobile-based platforms can make it easier for farmers to register their land, access insurance, and receive payouts even in remote areas, according to Daka Munyaraadzi, Technical Manager at Agro Consortium in Uganda.

Training programs can help farmers understand the benefits of insurance and how to use these technologies effectively. Cooperative-led initiatives can reduce costs by pooling resources and ensuring that the benefits reach even the smallest farms explained Wycliffe Kiplagat, Director of Programs at the IBISA Network, that designs index-based insurance solutions to address climate change or weather-related risks associated with agriculture ecosystems in Kenya.

Scaling these solutions requires collaboration between governments, insurers, technology providers, and development organizations. Public-private partnerships could possibly be explored to fund the initial rollout of geo-spatial land registration systems and subsidize insurance premiums for smallholder farmers.

The integration of geospatial software to secure land tenure has the potential to transform agricultural insurance in Africa. Enhancing risk assessment, speeding up claims, promoting financial inclusion, and strengthening climate resilience address some of the most pressing challenges facing the continent’s farmers. Beyond a technological advancement, this innovative approach offers a pathway to security, stability, and prosperity for millions of smallholder farmers.

Also Read: Challenges to Private Sector Engagement in African Agriculture: Markets, Capacity and Capital

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 About the Author

Christopher Burke formerly served as Senior Land Tenure Officer and VGGT Coordinator with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UN FAO). He is currently an advisor at WMC Africa, a communications and advisory agency located in Kampala, Uganda. With almost 30 years of experience, Christopher has worked extensively on social, political, and economic development issues focused on agriculture, governance, environment, communications, and international relations in Asia and Africa.