NAICOM, Ministry partner to strengthen agric insurance, boost food security

The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security have entered into a strategic partnership aimed at strengthening agricultural insurance and advancing the nation’s food security agenda.

The collaboration followed a high-level meeting between the Commissioner for Insurance, Mr. Olusegun Ayo Omosehin, and the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security, Sen. Dr. Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, at the Ministry’s headquarters in Abuja. The discussions focused on aligning policies, deepening collaboration, and accelerating reforms to protect smallholder farmers and support the current Administration’s food security objectives.

Key outcomes from the meeting highlighted that the passage of the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025 presents a significant opportunity to modernise the insurance sector and align institutional frameworks to better serve smallholders and national food security goals.

Both parties committed to close policy alignment to ensure that the Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC), the country’s sole specialised agricultural insurance institution, is positioned to deliver meaningful protection across the agricultural value chain. The meeting agreed that NAIC must be elevated and restructured to operate effectively within the new insurance architecture established by NIIRA 2025, enhancing its operational impact.

The Ministry’s newly created Federal Department of Agricultural Data Analytics will coordinate efforts to gather, validate, and govern agricultural data critical for index insurance and other parametric solutions. Both parties also emphasised the need for capacity building to strengthen technical expertise across the sector.

A technical working relationship and a special joint platform between the Ministry and NAICOM will be established for the effective implementation of reforms.

These actions aim to expand financial protection for smallholder farmers, reduce vulnerability to climate and disaster risks, attract investment into agriculture by reducing risk exposure, and contribute to the Administration’s objective of a resilient, inclusive agricultural sector and broader economic growth.

The meeting underscored the central role of agricultural insurance in protecting farmers and building resilience against natural disasters and climate shocks—indispensable elements of food security. With commercial insurers covering only a limited share of agricultural risk, NAIC’s role as the specialised agricultural insurance institution remains vital.

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled:  Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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