This paper reviews the potential role for and
experience with index based insurance for managing
drought risks in agriculture and rural areas in the dry areas
of developing countries. It argues that while index
insurance is not a panacea for risk management, it could
make important, market-based contributions in catalyzing
sustainable safety nets and promoting agricultural growth.
And though the private sector should be the main supplier,
there are still important enabling and facilitating roles that
need to be played by the public sector.
Keywords Drought management . Agricultural risk
management . Disaster risk management . Index insurance .
Dry areas . Agricultural insurance . Food security