Satellite Technology and its continued advancement is critical to the relevance and accuracy of index insurance products as a counter against weather-related risks. The World Bank Group’s Global Index Insurance Facility (GIIF) in partnership with its regional partners has been working with researchers and scientists to refine satellite technology for index insurance product design.

For eight years, Chandrasiri Vanasunder, a small holderfamerin the Ratnapura district of Sri Lanka, bore the lossescaused by drought and excess-rainfall on his 2-acre teaestate. But all that begun tochange in 2012, when a salesrepresentative from Sanasa told him about ‘index-basedinsurance’ for tea plants. “As soon as I heard about theproduct, I knew that this was a good product. I have sufferedsevere losses in the past, and this seemed like a smart ideato help me prepare for future uncertainty.” Vanasunder’sjudgment proved right, as approximately half -way throughthe last season, he received

Full Publication Mobile communications can help to meet the challenge of feeding an estimated 9.2 billion people by 2050. The 12 specific opportunities explored in this study could increase agricultural income by around $138 billion across 26 of Vodafone’s markets in 2020. Connected agriculture could also reduce carbon emissions and reduce water consumed in irrigation. This report, co-authored by Accenture, Vodafone and Oxfam, aims to stimulate the necessary engagement between mobile operators, governments, non-profits and businesses to realize these opportunities and explore others.

Full Publication This pre-feasibility report was prepared for the Ford Foundation by Jason Hartell of GlobalAgRisk, Inc., Ntongi McFadyen of the Livelihoods Department of Save the Children, USA, and Jerry Skees of GlobalAgRisk, Inc., under Ford Grant No. 1100-0121 and IIEF Program No. FF-5H016. GlobalAgRisk is a policy-oriented firm with close ties to the University of Kentucky. Our work is supported by international donors who recognize the importance of markets in transferring natural disaster risk as a means for developing and enhancing access to financial service by the productive poor