Climate-smart crop insurance to promote adoption of stress-tolerant seeds: Midterm findings from a cluster randomized trial

Climate-smart crop insurance to promote adoption of stress-tolerant seeds: Midterm findings from a cluster randomized trial PDF Author: Cecchi, Francesco
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 9

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Book Description
Too often, smallholder farmers suffer severe financial consequences from extreme weather events, pests, and disease; and climate change will increase the frequency at which natural hazards occur. This poses a threat to livelihoods not only ex post, by reducing agricultural output and inducing farmers to sell their assets, keep children out of school or borrow at high rates; but also ex ante, by discouraging farmers from investing in high-return practices and technologies (Elbers et al., 2007). Innovative solutions are needed to help marginalized farmers prepare for these natural hazards. One solution, building upon decades of agricultural research for development, can be found in the breeding of crop varieties that are more tolerant to weather shocks, pests and disease. The resulting improvements in seed technology offer promising pathways to improve farmers’ adaptive capacity, crowd in investments in agriculture, and thereby enhance agricultural productivity (Emerick et al., 2016). At the same time, stress tolerance is not a bullet-proof solution against all hazards. Farming is risky by nature, and improved stress-tolerant varieties will not shield farmers from more severe hazards, or from risks for which stress tolerance was not an explicit breeding objective. Drought-tolerant varieties are, for instance, not necessarily disease tolerant as well. Improving resilience in the face of climate change will require a more complete solution, in which farmers invest in stress-tolerant varieties to reduce their exposure to moderate, manageable risks, whilst accessing other types of solutions, including financial services, to protect their livelihoods from more severe and catastrophic production risks. This project note describes the findings from a research program in Kenya that aims to design, implement, and evaluate more complete risk management solutions; in particular, a solution that promotes stress-tolerant crops and varieties using an innovative picture-based crop insurance (PBI) product. The note first describes this intervention and the study designed to measure its impacts, followed by an overview of key findings at midline. This will include insights on the scalability of picture-based claims settlement, opportunities for more gender-responsive program design, and demand for the insurance product. We conclude by describing key challenges faced whilst implementing these solutions and providing an outlook for the future.

Climate-smart crop insurance to promote adoption of stress-tolerant seeds: Midterm findings from a cluster randomized trial

Climate-smart crop insurance to promote adoption of stress-tolerant seeds: Midterm findings from a cluster randomized trial PDF Author: Cecchi, Francesco
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 9

Get Book Here

Book Description
Too often, smallholder farmers suffer severe financial consequences from extreme weather events, pests, and disease; and climate change will increase the frequency at which natural hazards occur. This poses a threat to livelihoods not only ex post, by reducing agricultural output and inducing farmers to sell their assets, keep children out of school or borrow at high rates; but also ex ante, by discouraging farmers from investing in high-return practices and technologies (Elbers et al., 2007). Innovative solutions are needed to help marginalized farmers prepare for these natural hazards. One solution, building upon decades of agricultural research for development, can be found in the breeding of crop varieties that are more tolerant to weather shocks, pests and disease. The resulting improvements in seed technology offer promising pathways to improve farmers’ adaptive capacity, crowd in investments in agriculture, and thereby enhance agricultural productivity (Emerick et al., 2016). At the same time, stress tolerance is not a bullet-proof solution against all hazards. Farming is risky by nature, and improved stress-tolerant varieties will not shield farmers from more severe hazards, or from risks for which stress tolerance was not an explicit breeding objective. Drought-tolerant varieties are, for instance, not necessarily disease tolerant as well. Improving resilience in the face of climate change will require a more complete solution, in which farmers invest in stress-tolerant varieties to reduce their exposure to moderate, manageable risks, whilst accessing other types of solutions, including financial services, to protect their livelihoods from more severe and catastrophic production risks. This project note describes the findings from a research program in Kenya that aims to design, implement, and evaluate more complete risk management solutions; in particular, a solution that promotes stress-tolerant crops and varieties using an innovative picture-based crop insurance (PBI) product. The note first describes this intervention and the study designed to measure its impacts, followed by an overview of key findings at midline. This will include insights on the scalability of picture-based claims settlement, opportunities for more gender-responsive program design, and demand for the insurance product. We conclude by describing key challenges faced whilst implementing these solutions and providing an outlook for the future.

From climate risk to resilience: Unpacking the economic impacts of climate change in Kenya

From climate risk to resilience: Unpacking the economic impacts of climate change in Kenya PDF Author: Detelinova, Iva
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 51

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Book Description
Substantial model variability exists regarding the likely meteorological impact of climate change on Kenya, particularly with respect to future precipitation levels. Significant regional differences are expected, largely due to Kenya’s diverse climate profile. Overall, temperatures are projected to increase while future precipitation levels are highly uncertain. Climate change is expected to significantly affect coastal areas, including because of sea level rise risks, stronger winds, and an overall warmer and drier climate. This will likely harm important ecosystems, including wetlands, mangroves, and coral reefs. Some models project that arid and semi-arid areas may become drier and hotter, which would exacerbate preexisting water scarcity and agricultural challenges for the already vulnerable communities living there. That said, these projections are not corroborated by all models. The climate change impact on other areas, particularly south and west of Mount Kenya, could generally be positive, as it would provide even better conditions for agriculture. The key climate change risk for Kenya is from extreme events, in particular droughts and floods. The frequency and intensity of such events is likely to increase because of climate change. They also often lead to adverse knock-on effects, such as soil erosion, land degradation, and pest breakouts. Overall, Kenya’s updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) (2020) estimates that between 2010 and 2020, adverse climate change-related events led to annual socioeconomic losses of 3–5 percent of total gross domestic product (GDP).

Shock Waves

Shock Waves PDF Author: Stephane Hallegatte
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 1464806748
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 227

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Book Description
Ending poverty and stabilizing climate change will be two unprecedented global achievements and two major steps toward sustainable development. But the two objectives cannot be considered in isolation: they need to be jointly tackled through an integrated strategy. This report brings together those two objectives and explores how they can more easily be achieved if considered together. It examines the potential impact of climate change and climate policies on poverty reduction. It also provides guidance on how to create a “win-win†? situation so that climate change policies contribute to poverty reduction and poverty-reduction policies contribute to climate change mitigation and resilience building. The key finding of the report is that climate change represents a significant obstacle to the sustained eradication of poverty, but future impacts on poverty are determined by policy choices: rapid, inclusive, and climate-informed development can prevent most short-term impacts whereas immediate pro-poor, emissions-reduction policies can drastically limit long-term ones.

The State of Food and Agriculture 2021

The State of Food and Agriculture 2021 PDF Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
ISBN: 9251343292
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 182

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Book Description
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the vulnerability of agrifood systems to shocks and stresses and led to increased global food insecurity and malnutrition. Action is needed to make agrifood systems more resilient, efficient, sustainable and inclusive. The State of Food and Agriculture 2021 presents country-level indicators of the resilience of agrifood systems. The indicators measure the robustness of primary production and food availability, as well as physical and economic access to food. They can thus help assess the capacity of national agrifood systems to absorb shocks and stresses, a key aspect of resilience. The report analyses the vulnerabilities of food supply chains and how rural households cope with risks and shocks. It discusses options to minimize trade-offs that building resilience may have with efficiency and inclusivity. The aim is to offer guidance on policies to enhance food supply chain resilience, support livelihoods in the agrifood system and, in the face of disruption, ensure sustainable access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to all.

2016 Global Food Policy Report: Synopsis

2016 Global Food Policy Report: Synopsis PDF Author: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN: 0896299791
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 4

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Book Description
The Global Food Policy Report is IFPRI’s flagship publication. This year’s annual report examines major food policy issues, global and regional developments, and commitments made in 2015, and presents data on key food policy indicators. The report also proposes key policy options for 2016 and beyond to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. In 2015, the global community made major commitments on sustainable development and climate change. The global food system lies at the heart of these commitments—and we will only be able to meet the new goals if we work to transform our food system to be more inclusive, climate-smart, sustainable, efficient, nutrition- and health-driven, and business-friendly.

Adaptation Policy Frameworks for Climate Change

Adaptation Policy Frameworks for Climate Change PDF Author: Ian Burton
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521617604
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 268

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Book Description
Adaptation is a process by which individuals, communities and countries seek to cope with the consequences of climate change. The process of adaptation is not new; the idea of incorporating future climate risk into policy-making is. While our understanding of climate change and its potential impacts has become clearer, the availability of practical guidance on adaptation has not kept pace. The development of the Adaptation Policy Framework (APF) is intended to help provide the rapidly evolving process of adaptation policy-making with a much-needed roadmap. Ultimately, the purpose of the APF is to support adaptation processes to protect - and enhance - human well-being in the face of climate change. This volume will be invaluable for everyone working on climate change adaptation and policy-making.

Solar powered irrigation systems

Solar powered irrigation systems PDF Author: Aerospace Corporation. Energy and Transportation Division
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Irrigation
Languages : en
Pages : 94

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Book Description


The Potato Crop

The Potato Crop PDF Author: Hugo Campos
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030286835
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 524

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Book Description
This book is open access under a CC BY 4.0 license. This book provides a fresh, updated and science-based perspective on the current status and prospects of the diverse array of topics related to the potato, and was written by distinguished scientists with hands-on global experience in research aspects related to potato. The potato is the third most important global food crop in terms of consumption. Being the only vegetatively propagated species among the world’s main five staple crops creates both issues and opportunities for the potato: on the one hand, this constrains the speed of its geographic expansion and its options for international commercialization and distribution when compared with commodity crops such as maize, wheat or rice. On the other, it provides an effective insulation against speculation and unforeseen spikes in commodity prices, since the potato does not represent a good traded on global markets. These two factors highlight the underappreciated and underrated role of the potato as a dependable nutrition security crop, one that can mitigate turmoil in world food supply and demand and political instability in some developing countries. Increasingly, the global role of the potato has expanded from a profitable crop in developing countries to a crop providing income and nutrition security in developing ones. This book will appeal to academics and students of crop sciences, but also policy makers and other stakeholders involved in the potato and its contribution to humankind’s food security.

Social Dimensions of Climate Change

Social Dimensions of Climate Change PDF Author: Robin Mearns
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 0821381423
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 348

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Book Description
While major strides have been made in the scientific understanding of climate change, much less understood is how these dynamics in the physical enviornment interact with socioeconomic systems. This book brings together the latest knowledge on the consequences of climate change for society and how best to address them.

Postharvest Handling

Postharvest Handling PDF Author: Nigel H. Banks
Publisher: Academic Press
ISBN: 0080920780
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 637

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Book Description
Consideration of the interactions between decisions made at one point in the supply chain and its effects on the subsequent stages is the core concept of a systems approach. Postharvest Handling is unique in its application of this systems approach to the handling of fruits and vegetables, exploring multiple aspects of this important process through chapters written by experts from a variety of backgrounds.Newly updated and revised, this second edition includes coverage of the logistics of fresh produce from multiple perspectives, postharvest handing under varying weather conditions, quality control, changes in consumer eating habits and other factors key to successful postharvest handling.The ideal book for understanding the economic as well as physical impacts of postharvest handling decisions.Key Features:*Features contributions from leading experts providing a variety of perspectives*Updated with 12 new chapters*Focuses on application-based information for practical implementation*System approach is unique in the handling of fruits and vegetables