Linking agricultural index insurance with factors that influence maize yield in rain-fed smallholder farming systems

dc.contributor.authorMasiza, Wonga
dc.contributor.authorChirima, Johannes George
dc.contributor.authorHamandawana, Hamisai
dc.contributor.authorKalumba, Ahmed Mukalazi
dc.contributor.authorMagagula, Hezekiel Bheki
dc.date.accessioned2022-09-22T05:42:50Z
dc.date.available2022-09-22T05:42:50Z
dc.date.issued2021-05-06
dc.description.abstractWeather extremes pose substantial threats to food security in areas where the main source of livelihood is rain-fed crop production. In most of these areas, agricultural index insurance (AII) is recognized as being capable of securitizing food production by providing safety nets against weather-induced crop losses. Unfortunately, however, AII does not indemnify farmers for non weather-related crop losses. This study investigates how this gap can be filled by exploring strategies through which AII can be linked with non-weather factors that influence crop production. We do this by using an improvised variable ranking methodology to identify these factors in the O.R. Tambo District Municipality, South Africa. Results show that key agrometeorological variables comprising surface moisture content, growing degree-days, and precipitation influence maize yield even under optimal weather conditions, while seed variety, fertilizer application rate, soil pH, and ownership of machinery play an equally important role. This finding is important because it demonstrates that although AII focuses more on weather elements, there are non-weather variables that may expose farmers to production risk even under optimal weather conditions. As such, linking AII with critical non-weather, yield-determining factors can be a better risk management strategy.en_US
dc.description.departmentGeography, Geoinformatics and Meteorologyen_US
dc.description.sponsorshipThe Department of Science and Innovation through the Agricultural Research Council.en_US
dc.description.urihttps://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainabilityen_US
dc.identifier.citationMasiza, W.; Chirima, J.G.; Hamandawana, H.; Kalumba, A.M.; Magagula, H.B. Linking Agricultural Index Insurance with Factors That Influence Maize Yield in Rain-Fed Smallholder Farming Systems. Sustainability 2021, 13, 5176. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13095176.en_US
dc.identifier.issn2071-1050 (online)
dc.identifier.other10.3390/su13095176
dc.identifier.urihttps://repository.up.ac.za/handle/2263/87283
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherMDPIen_US
dc.rights© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license.en_US
dc.subjectAgricultural insuranceen_US
dc.subjectBundlingen_US
dc.subjectCrop yielden_US
dc.subjectRisk managementen_US
dc.subjectVariable importanceen_US
dc.subjectAgricultural index insurance (AII)en_US
dc.titleLinking agricultural index insurance with factors that influence maize yield in rain-fed smallholder farming systemsen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US

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