Aon announces first-of-its-kind collaboration with the African Development Bank and AI startup Amini to catalyze regenerative agriculture in Africa

Aon announces first-of-its-kind collaboration with the African Development Bank and AI startup Amini to catalyze regenerative agriculture in Africa

Collaboration focused on de-risking the "first mile" of the global agricultural value chain through enhanced transparency, data access, and greater economic inclusion for smallholder farmers

DUBLIN, Dec. 4, 2023 - Aon plc (NYSE: AON), a leading global professional services firm, today announced a unique collaboration with the African Development Bank (AfDB), Africa's premier development finance institution, and Amini, a leading innovator in space technology and artificial intelligence (AI), in an effort to increase crop insurance capacity across Africa, support smallholder farmers' resilience and accelerate the use of nature positive practices.

Additional anticipated benefits will include a reduction of supply chain risks for the food and beverage sector, as well as new opportunities for the expansion of global agricultural value chains.

The collaboration intends to leverage first-of-its-kind, farm-level data produced by Amini that is intended to enable Aon's support of the African Development Bank's Africa Climate Risk Insurance Facility for Adaptation to develop innovative de-risking solutions and build capacity to assess and monitor the changing risk environment across the continent. Farmers would then use the data to make better-informed decisions leading to greater resiliency and yield improvements. Further, the collaboration is aimed at helping Aon clients with extensive supply chains or balance sheet exposure to the agricultural sector to better manage the multi-faceted impacts of climate risk.

"Aon is at the forefront of transformational innovation, supporting our clients as they face increasing, interconnected climate risks," said Eric Andersen, president of Aon. "Risk capital is a vital component of the climate transition and insurance stakeholders needs to innovate faster to address the world's rapidly changing needs. Our collaboration with the African Development Bank and Amini is a perfect example of a more holistic approach to risk."

Africa is home to 65 percent of the world's uncultivated arable land according to the African Development Bank, yet the OECD reports that Africa only accounts for 3 percent of global GDP. Environmental data scarcity has prevented the expansion of agricultural crop insurance, stunting the growth of the agrifood sector, and preventing climate adaptation through regenerative farming practices. Sub-Saharan African smallholder farmers are highly vulnerable to extreme weather events and only 3 percent have effective crop insurance. Regenerative agricultural practices are a proven solution leading, over time, to improved flood and drought resilience and increasing crop health and yield. Other anticipated benefits include amplified carbon sequestration in addition to lower supply chain volatility.

"The Africa Climate Risk Insurance Facility for Adaptation is a model of how strategic collaborations can significantly advance our efforts in climate risk management and agricultural sustainability," said Beth Dunford, vice president of the African Development Bank. "Aon's global experience in risk management, combined with Amini's technological innovation, forms a strong alliance that supports the Bank's vision for a resilient agricultural sector capable of withstanding and thriving amidst the challenges posed by climate change."

"Our collaboration with Aon will help strengthen and accelerate our platform deployment with world leading companies driven to improve their sustainability practices, while reinforcing the resilience of their extensive supply chains," said Kate Kallot, founder and CEO of Amini. "Together, we have a unique opportunity to kickstart positive feedback loops which will transform global food systems and support the regeneration of natural capital at scale."

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