The African Risk Capacity Limited (ARC Ltd) has appointed two new Non-Executive Directors (NEDs), Mr Jurgen Meisch and Mr. Phillip Pettersen, to join its Board of Directors to bring independent strategic guidance and oversight to its operations. The new directors joined a group of other industry experts led by Mr. Abdoulie Janneh and Dr Frannie Leautier who serves as interim Chair and as alternate Chairperson, respectively. In just over 6 years of operations, the ARC Ltd has made $60m payouts to Governments of Senegal, Mauritania and Malawi following droughts episodes in 2014, 2015 and 2019. These funds have gone towards assisting over 2.1 million people whose livelihoods rely on agriculture, preventing the loss of hard-earned developmental gains in addition to 924,689 livestock. Governments have used ARC Ltd funding to scale up cash transfers, subsidize livestock feeds, replenish depleted food reserves, and distribute emergency food supplies.
Speaking on the appointments, ASG Mohamed Beavogui, the Director-General of ARC Agency said, “we have always been guided by the principle that the quality of our work depends on the capacity of our people. The impressive outcomes we have recorded over the years attest to this principle. We are hopeful that the new Directors will bring a fresh impetus and an uncommon expertise to our operations to serve our Member States even more effectively.” Expressing confidence in the integrity of the new Directors, the CEO of ARC Ltd, Mr. Lesley Ndlovu, stated, “a common denominator I have seen in ARC is the professionalism of the women and men constituting its Management and staff. The rigorous selection process of the new directors, not just based on their rich professional credentials, but especially on their deep passion for the industry, validates the faith of various stakeholders in our ability to field the right people to deliver desirable outcomes.”
The ARC Ltd is a financial affiliate of the African Risk Capacity (ARC), which is a Specialised Agency of the African Union established to assist member states in tackling the impact of natural disasters on vulnerable people. ARC transfers the burden of weather and other natural disaster risks away from governments, enabling them to build resilience and better plan, prepare, and respond to extreme events. ARC Ltd is a ground-breaking public-private partnership that focuses on facilitating economic development in Africa and empowering governments to protect their vulnerable populations from the impact of natural disasters through the provision of sovereign insurance. Seeded by the UK’s DFID and Germany’s BMZ through KFW, ARC Ltd is a mutual insurance company that will eventually be wholly owned by African sovereigns.The appointments of the new Directors terms commenced on 01 May 2020 and will run for a tenure of 3 years.
