When the Water Turns Silent: How Bangladesh’s First Fisheries Insurance Is Giving Farmers a Voice Against Climate Risk

In Satkhira, Nurul Haque has been farming fish for over a decade. His pond is more than just a livelihood; it’s how he feeds his family, pays for his children’s education, and supports two workers from his village. Last year, everything changed. A sudden tidal surge breached his pond’s boundary wall, washing away most of his fish in overnight.

“I watched helplessly,” Nurul said. “I couldn’t stop the water. And I couldn’t stop the loss.”

With no insurance and no compensation, he was left with silence, anxiety, and an empty pond.

This year, Nurul chose a different path. At a village Uthaan Boithok, he learned about something entirely new to him – fisheries microinsurance.

At Green Delta Insurance PLC, we believe no farmer should face climate risks alone. That’s why we’ve launched Bangladesh’s first parametric microinsurance designed specifically for smallholder freshwater fish farmers.

Fast payouts
Minimal paperwork
Payout triggered by climate data, exactly when it’s needed most

The Breakthrough

Parametric microinsurance: automatic payouts the moment weather data confirms a qualifying event.
No claims forms, no branch visits; funds are transferred directly to mobile wallets.

Beyond the Policy

Digital Tool	What It Delivers
Motsho Bondhu (Android & iOS)	Pond-level weather alerts, feed & growth calculator, short video tips
AI Call Centre (Speaklar)	Bangla voice support -nutrition, disease, insurance help

Developed in partnership with Innovision Consulting and Swisscontact Bangladesh under the Bangladesh Microinsurance Market Development Programme (BMMDP) through funding from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the product is tailored to shield fish farmers from weather-related loss.

But we’ve gone further than insurance. We’ve integrated financial protection with powerful digital tools:

Motsho Bondhu – a mobile app offering hyperlocal forecasts, aquaculture advice, and feed management tools
AI-powered call center (via our partner Speaklar) – giving farmers instant access to expert opinion, right from their villages

Rolling Out

We’ve begun connecting farmers through Uthaan Boithoks in Mymensingh – interactive village gatherings that bring together farmers, input dealers, and local officials. The outcome?

Strong interest
Growing enrollments
Meaningful dialogue around resilience

This initiative is part of the project titled “Development and Testing of a Viable Microinsurance Product in the Fisheries/Aquaculture Sector of Bangladesh,” implemented by Innovision Consulting under BMMDP of Swiss contact and funded by SDC. The pilot spans Mymensingh, Khulna, Satkhira, Bagerhat, and Jashore, assessing feasibility, refining the model, and scaling what works.

Why It’s Bigger Than Insurance

Because when a farmer feels seen and shielded, they produce more, earn more, and hire more. Resilience is contagious.

This is more than insurance. It’s resilience through innovation.