A new insurance firm set up with the help of Bermudian companies to provide microinsurance in the developing world is to launch its first venture in Zimbabwe.

And Blue Marble Microinsurance, set up by eight major players, plans to expand the business across the African continent.

The Zimbabwe pilot scheme will offer drought protection to smallholder maize farmers. Joan Lamm-Tennant, CEO of Blue Marble, said: “By working together, we bring insurance protection to the underserved in Zimbabwe, a region once known as the breadbasket of Africa, but now constrained by food insecurity.”

A spokeswoman for Blue Marble added the Zimbabwe scheme had three key features.

Data scientists and agriculture experts drawn from the consortium companies will design a proprietary index to support the insurance product.

The insurance scheme will also use two-way mobile communication with customers to offer continuous improvement.

And it will use innovative point-sensor technology to measure rainfall and plant health throughout the growing season, which will complement traditional grid remote-sensing data to provide the best possible insurance cover. Blue Marble Microinsurance was set up by American International Group, Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited and Guy Carpenter & Company, together with Marsh & McLennan, Hamilton Insurance Group, Old Mutual, Transatlantic Reinsurance Company, XL Catlin and Zurich Insurance Group.

Hamilton Insurance Group chairman and CEO Brian Duperreault is the vice-chairman of Blue Marble.

The company aims to create a market for microinsurance, extending insurance protection to the underserved.

Blue Marble develops ventures that address societal problems, including food security, financial inclusion and the promotion of microentrepreneurs.