Rwanda Explores Climate Insurance to Protect Miners and Quarry Workers

Mining and quarrying are one of Rwanda's fastest-growing sectors, employing about 92,000 people in 2025. Yet many workers, especially casual and daily-paid labourers, earn only when they work, and when heavy rain, flooding or unstable ground makes sites unsafe, operations pause and incomes disappear.

To address this, the Government is assessing climate, or parametric, insurance as a complement to existing safety and social protection measures. Under this approach, a fixed payment is triggered automatically when independently measured rainfall exceeds an agreed threshold with no claims, and no proof of loss required.

The scheme would initially cover the March–May long rainy season, with rainfall data provided by Meteo Rwanda and cross-checked against satellite records. Enrolled workers at affected sites would receive equal cash payments directly to mobile-money, bank or SACCO accounts, ideally within two weeks. Indicative amounts range from Frw 15,000 to Frw 25,000 per event.

Premiums would be shared among workers, mining companies or cooperatives, with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning providing policy leadership and the Rwanda Mines, Petroleum and Gas Board supporting implementation. A supervised pilot, possibly under the National Bank of Rwanda's regulatory sandbox, is under consideration before any wider roll-out.

The initiative reflects the Government's commitment to a productive, safe and inclusive mining sector.