ZEP-RE expands partnership with Planet Labs for drought program

Planet Labs PBC, a supplier of each day Earth information and insights, has introduced a contract extension with ZEP-RE, an African reinsurance firm based mostly in Nairobi, Kenya.

The extension follows a profitable first 12 months of collaboration and units the stage for a continued partnership on a five-year venture concluding in October 2027.

ZEP-RE at the moment makes use of Planet’s options to boost its insurance coverage program, supporting over two million pastoralists affected by drought within the Horn of Africa (HOA). This system employs a drought index personalized by location to find out payout quantities, premium charges, and facilitate direct claims funds to pastoralists.

Initially, this system aimed to succeed in 1.6 million pastoralists by 12 months 5 however achieved this milestone in 12 months two.

“Drought is a persistent risk not solely to the well being and well-being of livestock within the HOA but additionally to the livelihoods of communities, impacting their financial stability, social cohesion, and general high quality of life,” Berend de Jong, World Insurance coverage & Finance Lead at Planet, mentioned in a information launch.

He famous that their information serves as a robust instrument for ZEP-RE to develop and implement insurance coverage applications that assist defend the livelihoods of pastoralists in drought-vulnerable areas, offering transparency and belief for all companions concerned. De Jong emphasised the energy of their satellite tv for pc community in making certain information continuity.

ZEP-RE makes use of Planet satellite tv for pc information and reporting to measure vegetation well being over an space exceeding 1,000,000 km² within the HOA. This information permits ZEP-RE to evaluate situations, present goal drought measurements, and expedite payouts to affected pastoralists.

Hope Murera, CEO at ZEP-RE, commented on the partnership’s impression for the area.

“Since our partnership started, now we have been impressed by the resilience and scope of Planet’s information set. By means of near-daily information availability, we will monitor shifting NDVI values with excessive frequency, serving to us be extra environment friendly in our payouts to higher serve these susceptible communities affected by drought,” Murera mentioned.

The collaboration between ZEP-RE and Planet started in October 2022 as a part of the DRIVE program, which goals to boost pastoralists’ entry to monetary providers for drought threat mitigation, embrace them in worth chains, and facilitate livestock commerce.

Since then, ZEP-RE has leveraged Planet’s satellite tv for pc information to implement the danger safety product, supporting enterprise continuity and increasing its work within the area. DRIVE is a World Financial institution-funded venture in partnership with the governments of Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia.

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