Storms, drought, floods and heatwaves are a disaster for small scale farmers in Africa, who can’t all afford insurance. Yet new, technologically advanced and cheaper types of agricultural insurance exist and could be rolled out across Africa. These include picture-based insurance that relies on smartphone photos to assess crop damage, and insurance coupons that allow farmers to purchase insurance for times when they know the weather might be bad. In a policy note to the Group of 20 most powerful economies (the G20), economists Berber Kramer and Ruth Vargas Hill set out what South Africa’s G20 presidency should do.
How are African farmers at risk from climate change?
Climate change has made farming in Africa riskier than ever. Livelihoods relying on rain-fed agriculture are deeply tied to weather. Droughts, floods, cyclones, pests and diseases have become more frequent, and rising temperatures mean that crops once well-suited to local climates may no longer thrive.
