Thesis subject
Is it attractive for small holder farmers to ensure their crop?
In Kenya the Kilimo Salama project enables smallholder farmers to ensure their crop against drought and other weather calamities.
Most of the program is designed specifically for smallholders. It uses automated weather stations and mobile payments. These dramatically reduce administrative costs, finally enabling a premium price that millions of farmers can afford. By reducing their risks, insurance encourages farmers to invest in their farms. This way, they can raise their yields. Findings from Kilimo Salama's impact survey in October 2012 suggest that insured smallholders step up their farm investment by about 20 percent.
Is the project indeed a success? Who are these farmers that use the insurance (and who do not?). Do farmers understand the concept of insurance and microcredit, and are they all ready to enter the commercial world with market mechanisms? Is nothing left of the old traditional moral economy with reciprocity as the way local communities organise themselves in relation to risk and the need for credit.