Mahul, Olivier
Improving Farmers' Access to Agricultural Insurance in India Olivier Mahul [electronic resource] / Olivier Mahul - Washington, D.C., The World Bank, 2012 - 1 online resource (22 p.) - Policy research working papers. World Bank e-Library. .
India's crop insurance program is the world's largest with 25 million farmers insured. However, issues in design, particularly related to delays in claims settlement, have led to 95 million farmer households not being covered, despite significant government subsidy. To address this and other problems, the Government of India is piloting a modified National Agricultural Insurance Scheme, a market-based scheme with involvement from the private sector. Compared with the existing scheme, the new program has a design that can offer more timely, claim settlement, less distortion in the allocation of government subsidies and cross-subsidies between farmer groups, and reduced basis risk. Implementation and technical challenges lie ahead which can be addressed but will require a comprehensive strategy, innovative solutions, and timely roll out. This paper describes and analyzes both programs, and discusses lessons learned in developing and implementing the new program.
10.1596/1813-9450-5987
Agriculture
Area yield crop insurance
Climate Change Economics
Debt Markets
Developing countries
Emerging Markets
Finance and Financial Sector Development
Hazard Risk Management
Insurance & Risk Mitigation
India
Improving Farmers' Access to Agricultural Insurance in India Olivier Mahul [electronic resource] / Olivier Mahul - Washington, D.C., The World Bank, 2012 - 1 online resource (22 p.) - Policy research working papers. World Bank e-Library. .
India's crop insurance program is the world's largest with 25 million farmers insured. However, issues in design, particularly related to delays in claims settlement, have led to 95 million farmer households not being covered, despite significant government subsidy. To address this and other problems, the Government of India is piloting a modified National Agricultural Insurance Scheme, a market-based scheme with involvement from the private sector. Compared with the existing scheme, the new program has a design that can offer more timely, claim settlement, less distortion in the allocation of government subsidies and cross-subsidies between farmer groups, and reduced basis risk. Implementation and technical challenges lie ahead which can be addressed but will require a comprehensive strategy, innovative solutions, and timely roll out. This paper describes and analyzes both programs, and discusses lessons learned in developing and implementing the new program.
10.1596/1813-9450-5987
Agriculture
Area yield crop insurance
Climate Change Economics
Debt Markets
Developing countries
Emerging Markets
Finance and Financial Sector Development
Hazard Risk Management
Insurance & Risk Mitigation
India