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Is Agricultural Insurance Fulfilling Its Promise for the Developing World? A Review of Recent Evidence

Author

Listed:
  • Berber Kramer

    (International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Nairobi, Kenya)

  • Peter Hazell

    (International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Washington, DC, USA)

  • Harold Alderman

    (International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Washington, DC, USA)

  • Francisco Ceballos

    (International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Washington, DC, USA)

  • Neha Kumar

    (International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Washington, DC, USA)

  • Anne G. Timu

    (International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Washington, DC, USA)

Abstract

Innovations in agricultural index insurance have raised expectations that the private sector can overcome shortcomings associated with more traditional indemnity-based products like multiperil crop insurance and strengthen agricultural risk management at scale across developing countries. This article updates previous reviews on agricultural insurance but differs in that it goes beyond the prognosis that recent innovations can help make insurance more commercially viable. As such, it addresses two important challenges that have received limited attention. First, it distinguishes different types of farm households and recognizes that many are excluded from the insurance market, describing additional innovations that can help make insurance more accessible to these excluded groups. Second, it acknowledges that insurance for catastrophic risks is unaffordable for most farmers and summarizes new developments in disaster assistance and safety net programs that can provide broader protection against these risks. The review concludes that cost-benefit analyses of subsidized insurance programs will be crucial for guiding public spending decisions.

Suggested Citation

  • Berber Kramer & Peter Hazell & Harold Alderman & Francisco Ceballos & Neha Kumar & Anne G. Timu, 2022. "Is Agricultural Insurance Fulfilling Its Promise for the Developing World? A Review of Recent Evidence," Annual Review of Resource Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 14(1), pages 291-311, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:anr:reseco:v:14:y:2022:p:291-311
    DOI: 10.1146/annurev-resource-111220-014147
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Matthew Stuart & Cindy Yu & David A. Hennessy, 2023. "The Impact of Stocks on Correlations between Crop Yields and Prices and on Revenue Insurance Premiums using Semiparametric Quantile Regression," Papers 2308.11805, arXiv.org, revised Jun 2024.
    2. Gatti, Nicolas & Cecil, Michael & Baylis, Kathy & Estes, Lyndon & Blekking, Jordan & Heckelei, Thomas & Vergopolan, Noemi & Evans, Tom, 2023. "Is closing the agricultural yield gap a “risky” endeavor?," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 208(C).
    3. Kramer, Berber & Porter, Maria & Wassie Bizuayehu, Solomon, 2023. "Basis Risk, Social Comparison, Perceptions of Fairness and Demand for Insurance: A Field Experiment in Ethiopia," 2024 Allied Social Sciences Association (ASSA) Annual Meeting, January 5-7, 2024, San Antonio, Texas 339075, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    4. Belissa, Temesgen K. & Lensink, Robert & Marr, Ana, 2025. "The impact of bundling index insurance with credit and input vouchers: Experimental evidence from Ethiopia," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 234(C).
    5. Castaing, Pauline & Gazeaud, Jules, 2025. "Do index insurance programs live up to their promises? Aggregating evidence from multiple experiments," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).
    6. Mastenbroek, Astrid & Gumucio, Tatiana & Nakanwagi, Josephine, 2024. "Gender, agricultural risk perceptions, and maize seed systems: A case study of drought-tolerant maize varieties in Uganda," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 217(C).
    7. Xiaolan Wang & Xinli Wang & Jundi Liu & Jing Wang, 2024. "Strategic interactions and market equilibrium in China's agricultural catastrophic insurance," Agricultural Economics, Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences, vol. 70(10), pages 495-512.
    8. Ella Kirchner & Oliver Musshoff, 2024. "Digital opportunities for the distribution of index‐based microinsurance: Evidence from a discrete choice experiment in Mali," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 75(2), pages 794-815, June.
    9. Berber Kramer & Carly Trachtman, 2024. "Gender dynamics in seed systems: an integrative review of seed promotion interventions in Africa," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 16(1), pages 19-45, February.
    10. Fan, Wenna & Wang, Feng & Zhang, Hao & Yan, Bin & Ling, Rui & Jiang, Hongfei, 2024. "Is climate change fueling commercial banks’ non-performing loan ratio? Empirical evidence from 31 provinces in China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 96(PA).
    11. Bachev, Hrabrin & Ivanov, Bozhidar & Terziev, Dimitar & Boevsky, Ivan & Georgiev, Minko & Todorova, Kristina & Petrov, Daniel & Blagoeva, Snejana & Gandeva, Rumena, 2025. "Аграрен Гавърнанс. Българският Опит И Принос [Agrarian governance. The Bulgarian experience and contribution]," MPRA Paper 125147, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Rival Valcin & Tomohiro Uchiyama & Rika Terano & Katsumori Hatanaka & Yasuo Ohe & Nina Shimoguchi, 2024. "Ex-ante evaluation of a cross-sectorial business model for risk management in new product development: the case of Haitian farming," Review of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Studies, Springer, vol. 105(4), pages 419-441, December.
    13. repec:caa:jnlage:v:preprint:id:358-2023-agricecon is not listed on IDEAS
    14. Jeannette Aduhene-Chinbuah & Clement Oppong Peprah, 2024. "Multi-risk management in Ghana's agricultural sector: Strategies, actors, and conceptual shifts—a review," Review of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Studies, Springer, vol. 105(4), pages 393-418, December.
    15. Edward Asiedu & Dorcas Sowah & Amin Karimu, 2024. "Impact of national health insurance enrolment on farm investments in Sub-Saharan Africa: empirical evidence from Ghana," Agricultural Finance Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 84(4/5), pages 320-341, September.
    16. Kramer, Berber & Pattnaik, Subhransu & Ward, Patrick S. & Xu, Yingchen, 2023. "Impacts of a digital credit-insurance bundle for landless farmers: Evidence from a cluster randomized trial in Odisha, India," 2024 Allied Social Sciences Association (ASSA) Annual Meeting, January 5-7, 2024, San Antonio, Texas 339080, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.

    More about this item

    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • G52 - Financial Economics - - Household Finance - - - Insurance
    • H23 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Externalities; Redistributive Effects; Environmental Taxes and Subsidies
    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • Q14 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Agricultural Finance

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