2020 Conference Agenda

Conference participants registration

Official conference opening ceremony

Welcome notes from organizers, sponsors and partners of the Conference. Special notes from the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Georgia

Section: Regional agricultural insurance markets overview

1. Development of state-subsidized agricultural insurance program in Georgia. — Natalia Kharatishvili (Program Manager, ARDA (Agricultural and Rural Development Agency — Georgia))

2. Development of agricultural insurance system in Philippines: challenges and opportunities for future development. — Atty. Jovy C. Bernabe (President of the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation- Philippines)

3. Development of crop insurance in India — Mr. Surya Swaroop Saxena  (General Manager of the Agricultural Insurance Company of India — India)

4. Development of agricultural insurance in Uganda — Dr. B. Vyasa Krishna (CEO of the First Insurance Company Ltd. — Uganda)

Section: Development Cooperation in agricultural insurance and bankassurance. 

Current section is in the process of formation. Presentations and speakers will be added upon approval. All changes will be communicated in regular Conference Releases 

Indicate your interest or submit your presentation in the Call for Presentations section

Section: Specifics of introduction and development of crop and livestock insurance programs.

1. Drought insurance based on Satellite soil moisture measurements — Marcel Andriesse (Vice President, Senior Underwriter Agriculture, Swiss Re (Switzerland)) 

2. Digitalization in the agricultural sector of Kazakhstan. Opportunities for innovative approaches in agricultural insurance. — Yeldos Auezbekov (General Director, AGRIN Ltd. /  Chairman of Agroinsurers Association (Kazakhstan)) 

3. Experience of Switzerland in application grassland drought index and climate information provided by Swissagroindex — Pascal Forrer (President, Schweitzer Hagel (Switzerland)) 

4. Development of a state-subsidized satellite-based drought insurance program in Uganda. — Eleni Vakaki (Remote Sensing / Index Insurance, eLEAF (Netherlands)) 

First day’s closing remarks and announcements 

Section: Underwriting and loss adjustment in agricultural insurance. 

1. Use of public remote sensing data in crop insurance — Maria Lachenmeier (Underwriter Agriculture, AXA XL (Switzerland))

2. Monitoring Hail occurrence based on lightning characteristics — Marc Chautams (Underwriter Agriculture, Swiss Re (Switzerland)) 

3. Practical aspects of Loss Adjustment and Application use in field: Drought, Hail and Frost — Willie Du Plooy (MD of WWJ Agri, AgriHost (South Africa)) 

Current section is in the process of formation. Presentations and speakers will be added upon approval. All changes will be communicated in Conference Announcements 

Indicate your topic of interest or submit your presentation in the Call for Presentations

Section: Application of technology in agricultural insurance.

1. Defining the earth-observation needs for Agricultural Insurance and Reinsurance Industry — Ola Grabak (Project Manager, European Space Agency)

2. Earth Observation Guidelines for Agricultural Insurance Industry — Ralf Ryter (Project Manager, Geoville — Austria)

3. Satellites and drones — effective monitoring tools for agricultural insurance — Nick Ohrtman (Director, Geosys — USA)

4. Advanced climate analytics for the agricultural insurance sector  based on crop-specific climate indices. — Gregory Mygdakos (Project Manager, Agroapps Digital Tools P.C. — Greece)

5.  Acceleration of agricultural insurance introduction in developing countries by applying digital platforms upgrading agricultural ecosystem. Use-case with the Royal Exchange (Nigeria) — Roderick Panchaud (Insurance Business Lead, AgriTask — Israel)

Panel Discussion: Agricultural insurance / reinsurance challenges — required earth observation solutions.

Moderator: Ian Shynkarenko (Agricultural Insurance Consultant, CEO @ AgroInsurance International — Georgia)

Panelists: TBD (Additional announcement will follow upon confirmation.)

Conference closing remarks. Key takeaways, prospects and opportunities. Important conference announcements.

Official reception will be held on Mtatsmina Mountain at Funicular Restaurant. 

Own departure from the hotel, entering the restaurant using Tbilisi Funicular.

19:30 — 19:45 – Dinner start.

22:30 — Departure of the first bus to Biltmore Hotel

23:30 — Departure of the last bus to Biltmore Hotel

Dress code: Cocktail (no ties)

Field trip to Kakheti agricultural region of Georgia. Visit — orchards and vineyards. Practical experience exchange.

All registered participants take part free-of-charge.

• Trip includes a visit to several production sites in Kakheti agricultural area;
• Participants will have an exchange about local agricultural production technologies for stone fruits and grapes, including Georgian wine production —  specifics of traditional and modern winemaking;
• Morning branch, snacks at visited locations, lunch at the restaurant and transportation during all day will be provided by Conference Organizers;

The Study Tour day is planned as a full 1-day event. Airport drop-off is available for flights departing from Tbilisi after 21:00 on April 21, 2021. Otherwise it is recommended to book a flight from Tbilisi on April 22, 2021.

Further agenda updates will be communicated upon confirmation of details by speakers and panelists.