Featured Topic | Index-Based Insurance in Agriculture

Insurance is a small part of an array of approaches and instruments that are available to help the management of risks through transferring risk to a third party. Agriculture applications of index-based insurance – a form of insurance – have emerged to overcome some of the difficulties associated with traditional insurance products in developing-countries. Although the development and application of these instrument is still in its early stages, there are a number of advantages as well as challenges associated with their implementation. Many pilot projects have started, but scaling up index-based insurance projects has only happened in a few developing countries (notably India).

FARMD's team puts together a set of resources on this topic, to inform and facilitate knowledge exchage among practitioners working in this field. Visit this page periodically to check for news and updated information.

Latest News in Index Insurance

FARMD storifies daily news from the web on this important topic. Visit this site periodically to get informed Read FARMD's Storify News

Index-Based Insurance Project Database

FARMD has put together a database of recent development efforts to support index-based insurance pilots. Check the map to see the worldwide distribution of projects and search the database to get more information on each initiative. Search the Database

Resources on Drought & Index Insurance

• Index-Based Livestock Insurance - International Livestock Research Institute
• National Drought Insurance for Malawi - The World Bank

• Using Weather Index Insurance to Improve Drought Response for Famine Prevention - American Jourmal of Agricultural Economics

   

• Weather Index Insurance: The Case for South Africa - Microinsurance Agency

Recent Publications

The FARMD Resource library has over 140 documents related to agricultural insurance and index insurance. Visit the library to find case studies, briefing notes, research papers, and more.Search the Library.

NEW RELEASE: Weather Index Insurance: Scope, Challenges and Guideliness for Development Practitioners.  The publication has been produced by the World Bank’s Agricultural Risk Management Team (ARTM) in an effort to put together the knowledge that has been generated from almost eight years of work in this field. The document provides guidance to practitioners on the implementation of weather index programs, from the early stages of pre-feasibility to implementation. The publication is now available in the resources section of FARMD

Videos

International Research Institute for Climate and Society at  Columbia University (September 2011) | In this interview,  research economist Dan Osgood discusses index insurance  and how it is helping some poor rural communities reduce  hardships caused by drought in East Africa. Watch video in  Vimeo.

Cornell University (September 6, 2011) | This video features Chris Barrett, Professor of Applied Economics and Management, Cornell University in a one-hour seminar presentation on the topic of index based insurance. He outlines three different initiatives, one active in the commercial field, and the other two still only in the theoretical application stages. Uninsured risk is one of the most defining features of the low-income world. Visit Vimeo to Watch the Video

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Training Materials

• ARMT Training Materials in Implementing Weather Index Insurance Programs, January 2011