By Bisi Bamishe
Leadway Assurance, one of Nigeria’s leading insurance services providers and a member of the Leadway Group, a foremost non-banking financial services and wellbeing conglomerate, has advocated stronger climate risk solutions to safeguard Africa’s food systems at the ninth edition of Agriculture Summit Africa (ASA) 2026, convened by Sterling Bank.
The summit focused on improving food production, financing, processing, technology, trade, and policies to help Africa build stronger value chains, create jobs, strengthen intra-African trade, and become a stronger global food power. These objectives align with Leadway’s commitment to strengthening the agricultural sector by providing risk protection for farmers, agribusinesses, and investments across the agricultural value chain.
Speaking during a panel session titled “Climate Risk Management for Sustainability: Future-Proofing Africa’s Food System,” Ayoola Fatona, Global Head, Agricultural Risk Solutions, Leadway Assurance, highlighted affordability and the trust deficit as two key barriers to insurance adoption among smallholder farmers. “At Leadway, we have sought to address these challenges by building partnerships with organisations that share our commitment to advancing the livelihoods of smallholder farmers and strengthening their resilience to climate-related risks. Through these collaborations, we have been able to mobilise funding to pre-finance insurance premiums, ensuring that farmers have the protection they need in place from the outset of the planting season, when their risk exposure is at its highest.”
“In the 2025 wet season alone, our partnerships enaabled us to mobilise over US$1.2 million to provide insurance coverage for more than 400,000 farmers, and we are continuing to build on that progress. Beyond affordability, we recognise that trust must be earned through action. That is why we remain committed to ensuring constant and rapid payouts, no matter how large, whenever insured events occur,” he added.
Considering the practical challenges of reaching farmers, particularly in communities affected by insecurity, Leadway is leveraging remote sensing and other technology-enabled solutions to assess farms virtually, understand their structure and farming practices, and maintain engagement with farmers despite access constraints. Through its participation in Agriculture Summit Africa 2026, Leadway Assurance is reinforcing its commitment to advancing insurance solutions that protect agricultural investments, strengthen farmer resilience, and support the sustainable development of the agriculture sector.
The ninth edition of Agriculture Summit Africa 2026, themed “Building the Next Super Power: Africa’s Food Power Play,” held on 15-16 September 2026 at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, brought together key stakeholders across Africa’s agricultural sector, including representatives from government, agribusiness, insurance, finance, technology, research, and farming, to strategise on moving the continent from food security to food sovereignty.
