Kenya-based insurtech Pula has raised $20 million in funding for expansion into several African markets. The startup has been dedicated to increasing agricultural insurance accessibility for smallholder farmers in emerging markets, protecting them from the risks associated with pests, diseases, and extreme weather events such as floods and droughts.

According to the startup, Pula has enabled 15.4 million farmers in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to obtain insurance. With the recent closure of a $20 million Series B funding round, the company plans to forge new partnerships, including extending coverage to livestock.

The funding round was led by global investment manager BlueOrchard, under its InsuResilience strategy, designed to facilitate climate insurance access for vulnerable populations in emerging markets. Other participants included the International Finance Corporation (IFC) with its $225 million venture capital platform, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Hesabu Capital, and previous investors.

Pula co-founders Rose Goslinga and Thomas Njeru

Thomas Njeru, Pula’s CEO and co-founder alongside Rose Goslinga—both of whom have agricultural backgrounds—expressed excitement over the new funding.

"Partnering with these like-minded investors to globally expand Pula marks a thrilling milestone in achieving our ‘triple 100’ vision, aiming to insure 100 million smallholder farmers. What began as a radical idea deemed un-scalable nine years ago has now become a validated solution that meets the needs of millions across 22 countries,"

he said.

Pula adopts an innovative approach by embedding insurance within the products of over 100 partner organizations, including charities, banks, governments, and agricultural input companies. This strategy helps reach even the most remote farmers by incorporating insurance costs into farm inputs or credits.

The company tailors each insurance product to meet the specific demands of its clients and the needs of the farmers. These products are underwritten by various insurance and reinsurance firms and are precisely calibrated using Pula’s digital actuary platform, which analyzes historical data on weather, crop yields, and losses.

Significant partnerships include a long-standing collaboration with the government of Zambia, where insurance premiums are integrated with fertilizer and seed packages. In Ethiopia, Pula partnered with the World Food Programme, German Development Bank KfW, and a local insurer to provide insurance via an input voucher scheme, benefiting 122,000 farmers. This collaboration is particularly impactful following an outbreak of wheat rust in the Amhara region, leading to Pula's largest payout yet of approximately $800,000.

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Pula's efforts have demonstrably increased investment, yields, and savings among farmers, highlighting the transformative potential of agricultural insurance in markets like Africa, where small-scale farmers produce 70% of the food yet only 1% are insured. Challenges such as high costs, limited awareness, and accessibility continue to hinder the broader uptake of agricultural insurance.

"Research conducted by Pula in various African countries has shown that agricultural insurance typically helps smallholder farmers increase their farm investments by 16%, boost yields by 56%, and raise household savings by as much as 170%. Moreover, our partner insurers have paid out close to over $40 million to 900,000 farmers since our inception,"

Njeru noted.

He also highlighted that 80% of farmer groups and aggregators that purchase Pula's insurance renew their policies annually, a rate well above the industry average, reflecting high customer satisfaction with the comprehensive insurance products offered.

Looking ahead, Pula is expanding its scope to include livestock insurance, following a successful pilot in Nigeria, and plans further expansion in Asia and Latin America, where it began operations in 2021.