The Mesoamerican Reef Insurance Programme enters its sixth placement and expands to cover two new sites in Mexico
Photo: María del Carmen García
Regional initiative expands coverage to two additional protected areas in Quintana Roo, Mexico, strengthening climate resilience across the Mesoamerican Reef
July 2026 — The Mesoamerican Reef Fund (MAR Fund) and Willis, a WTW business (NASDAQ: WTW), are pleased to announce the sixth annual placement of the MAR Insurance Programme¹. This innovative regional mechanism provides rapid financing to support emergency reef response efforts following hurricanes across the Mesoamerican Reef (MAR).
Now entering its sixth year, the programme continues to expand its reach and impact. What began in 2021 with four Protected Areas (PAs) now provides coverage for 12 PAs across the region. This year, two additional PAs in Quintana Roo, Mexico —Arrecife de Puerto Morelos National Park and Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park— have been incorporated into the portfolio. Coverage under the 2026–2027 policy period runs from June 1, 2026, through May 31, 2027.
The MAR Insurance Programme is a cornerstone of MAR Fund’s Reef Rescue Initiative. It brings together parametric insurance, an emergency fund, and a coordinated response framework designed to protect one of the world’s most important marine ecosystems, the Mesoamerican Reef region. Since its inception, the programme has had the support of regional authorities. MAR Fund collaborates with them to advance climate adaptation across the four countries.
“As climate change continues to intensify across the wider Caribbean, having rapid access to emergency funding is essential to support timely response actions to accelerate reef recovery. We are proud to see the programme continue to grow, bringing new partners and additional reef sites into a mechanism that helps safeguard both this critical ecosystem and the coastal communities whose well-being depends on it”. —María José González, Executive Director of MAR Fund.
The MAR spans more than 1,000 kilometers from Cabo Catoche in northern Quintana Roo, Mexico, to the Bay Islands and the northern coast of Honduras. It generates over US$4.5 billion annually² in ecosystem services such as fisheries, tourism, and coastal protection, supporting the livelihoods of millions of people along its coastline.
Since its launch in 2021, the programme has been supported by the InsuResilience Solutions Fund (ISF). This core funding has been paired with additional contributions from MAR Fund’s Reef Rescue Initiative and those of strategic partners, including the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA) and the Adaptation Fund Climate Innovation Accelerator (AFCIA/UNDP). The programme’s regional expansion relied on targeted, site-specific collaboration with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), which in 2024 and 2025 helped establish insurance cover and emergency response capacities for two areas in southern Belize.
“The MAR Insurance Programme is paving the way for nature-based solutions against climate risks and exceeds initial expectations by continuously growing and expanding. The ISF is proud to continue supporting this innovative insurance programme protecting a unique natural treasure and providing livelihoods for vulnerable people in the MAR region”. —Dr Annette Detken, head of the InsuResilience Solutions Fund.
For the current policy year, the Mexican Fund for the Conservation of Nature (FMCN), through the ACCIÓN Project funded by the Green Climate Fund, has partnered in these efforts by financing the insurance premium for Puerto Morelos and Cozumel. The incorporation of these sites was also made possible thanks to the Secretariat of Ecology and Environment of Quintana Roo (SEMA) as a key driver in the process. The National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (CONANP) has also been instrumental in driving the establishment and strengthening of local response capacities and supporting effective preparedness and response efforts in those protected areas. Together, these partnerships are helping to enhance hurricane preparedness and reinforce the resilience of the MAR region.
“Reef conservation is essential to sustaining marine biodiversity and strengthening the resilience of coastal areas, on which local economies and protection against extreme weather events depend. With the expansion of this insurance to Puerto Morelos and Cozumel, funding from the Green Climate Fund through FMCN enhances the capacity to mobilize resources immediately after a hurricane, enabling reef restoration when it is needed most”. —Renée González, Chief Executive Officer of FMCN.
“This is the path set by Governor Mara Lezama: to grow sustainably, protect our natural wealth, and understand development as a shared responsibility among government, community, science, the private sector, and international cooperation. We will continue working to consolidate this mechanism, strengthen local capacities, and ensure a rapid, technical, and organized response to the impacts of climate change. Protecting the reefs means protecting marine life, the coast, tourism, fishing, employment, and the future of thousands of families in Quintana Roo”. —Óscar Rébora, Secretary of Ecology and Environment of the State of Quintana Roo.
The insurance solution has been structured and placed by Willis’ Alternative Risk Transfer team, with AXA Climate serving as the designer of the parametric insurance product for the current policy year. Together, the partners are helping pioneer a model that links nature conservation, climate adaptation, and innovative finance to ensure that coral reef ecosystems can recover more quickly after extreme weather events.
“As climate-related risks continue to increase, innovative insurance solutions are playing a vital role in strengthening resilience. By providing rapid access to funding following severe weather events, this program helps ensure that reef restoration efforts can begin quickly, protecting natural ecosystems, local economies and the communities that depend on them. This partnership demonstrates how insurance can be a powerful tool in supporting climate adaptation and sustainable development”. —Jody Yee, Head of Alternative Risk Transfer for the Americas.
“Coral reefs are among the world’s most valuable ecosystems, yet increasingly vulnerable to climate-related disasters. At AXA Climate, we believe parametric insurance can help ecosystems and the communities that depend on them recover faster by providing immediate funding after extreme events. We are proud to support another year of this programme, which has become a global benchmark for how innovative solutions can protect biodiversity, strengthen resilience, and help close the protection gap for natural ecosystems”. —Antoine Denoix, Chief Executive Officer of AXA Climate.
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About InsuResilience Solutions Fund The mission of the InsuResilience Solutions Fund (ISF) is to support innovative solutions to mitigate the negative impacts of climate change. Managed by Frankfurt School of Finance & Management and funded by KfW Development Bank on behalf of the German government, the ISF’s objective is to close the protection gap by focusing on solutions for vulnerable populations who are over-proportionately exposed to climate risks. Therefore, ISF fosters the development of needs-based and financially sustainable climate risk insurance products in developing and emerging countries. ISF has supported the MAR Insurance Programme since its inception in 2021, and continues to provide premium financing support until 2027. |
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About WTW At WTW (NASDAQ: WTW), we provide data-driven, insight-led solutions in the areas of people, risk and capital. Leveraging the global view and local expertise of our colleagues serving 140 countries and markets, we help organizations sharpen their strategy, enhance organizational resilience, motivate their workforce and maximise performance. Working shoulder to shoulder with our clients, we uncover opportunities for sustainable success—and provide perspective that moves you. |
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About AXA Climate
AXA Climate, a subsidiary of the AXA group dedicated to climate change adaptation and transition, supports sectors such as agribusiness, industry, finance, and the public sector by offering parametric insurance products, consulting services, over 40 hours of online training, and a suite of digital tools for climate projections. By leveraging science and data, AXA Climate helps companies and public players to tackle key environmental challenges and enables them to implement concrete adaptation and mitigation strategies tailored to their local contexts and specific needs. |
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About FMCN Created in 1994, FMCN collaborates with different sectors to preserve the natural heritage of Mexico. Our motto, “Sustaining our natural treasure,” inspires us to work hand in hand with all sectors to ensure a sustainable future in which we can all continue to enjoy the natural capital that surrounds and sustains us. |
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About SEMA The Secretariat of Ecology and Environment (SEMA) is the agency of the Government of Quintana Roo, México, responsible for formulating, directing, and evaluating the state’s environmental and sustainability policies. Its work focuses on biodiversity conservation, the protection and restoration of Quintana Roo’s coral reefs, climate change mitigation, integrated waste management, and the promotion of an active ecological culture, ensuring a balance between tourism dynamics and the preservation of the Mexican Caribbean’s natural resources. |
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About MAR Fund MAR Fund is a regional environmental fund that implements the Reef Rescue Initiative (RRI), whose main objective is to support the long-term ecological and economic viability of the Mesoamerican Reef. This is achieved through capacity building, strategic alliances, risk management instruments, and innovative financial mechanisms. Through the RRI, MAR Fund collaborates with local conservation organizations and government agencies at each insured reef site to strengthen their capacity to implement reef response plans in the aftermath of hurricanes. To enhance the effectiveness and sustainability of reef response efforts in the region, MAR Fund manages two innovative risk financing mechanisms: the Emergency Fund and the MAR Insurance Programme. In the event of a payout, insurance funds are disbursed within days to MAR Fund’s Emergency Fund and then immediately transferred to predefined organizations that mobilize response brigades to mitigate hurricane impacts on coral reefs. |
[1] The execution of this Programme shall not have any effect with respect to, or in connection with, any sovereignty claims over any territory (land, insular and maritime) claimed by the Republic of Guatemala and/or Belize; nor shall it have any effect over the rights and/or claims of either country over such territory.
[2] See full report here: https://publications.iadb.org/en/economic-valuation-ecosystem-services-mesoamericanreef-and-allocation-and-distribution-these
Photo: Martin Leglize