Local Authorities Manage to Provide Insurance for Tobacco Growing

Source from:  Liangshan Daily newspaper 06/03/2004

The government authorities of Liangshan Region – a major tobacco-growing region in southwest China's Sichuan Province – have managed to provide insurance for tobacco growing in the region, in an effort to help improve the quality of leaf tobacco produced in the region and minimize losses to tobacco growing caused by such natural disasters as hail. On May 30, the regional government held a meeting on the establishment of a mechanism for providing insurance for tobacco growing in the region. The meeting decided to establish in 2004 a mechanism of insurance against the natural disaster of hail covering tobacco growing in the whole of Liangshan Region, in an effort to guard against possible damage to tobacco growing from hail in a systematic way. Under the mechanism, for tobacco growers who sustain heavy losses from hail despite the adoption of preventive measures, they will each receive an appropriate amount of subsidies in compensation for losses. On the basis of existing facilities for preventing damage from hail, efforts will be made to establish and improve a complete preventive system covering major tobacco-growing areas with large plots of tobacco plantations measuring 3,000 mu to 5,000 mu (200 hectares to 333 hectares) gradually over the next three to five years, according to the meeting. The Hail Damage Prevention Direction Office of the regional government will be responsible for coordinating and directing the establishment and operation of the preventive system on a unified basis, the meeting said. Meanwhile, the regional government's leading group for tobacco production will exercise control over the use of any funds from a special insurance foundation. Any use of funds from the foundation shall be subject to unanimous approval of the leading group, according to the meeting. Enditem