The Right Product at the Right Time: Weather Index Insurance Adoption in Kenya

Last registered on September 04, 2023
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
The Right Product at the Right Time: Weather Index Insurance Adoption in Kenya
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0011473
Initial registration date
May 26, 2023

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
September 04, 2023, 7:15 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
Kenya
Region
Bomet Bungoma Nyeri Baringo

Primary Investigator

Name
[email protected] Gachungi
Affiliation
World Bank
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Dahyeon Jeong
PI Affiliation
World Bank
Contact Investigator
PI Name
Francesco Cecchi
PI Affiliation
Wageningen University
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Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2023-01-30
End date
2023-11-01
Keywords
Agriculture, Welfare
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
We evaluate the impact of modifying the traditional design of crop insurance contracts on smallholder farmers' preference for crop insurance and uptake rates. The study addresses the low take-up of crop insurance among smallholders in developing countries. It aims to assess the effects of two modifications: (i) offering insurance after the harvest of the preceding season instead of the beginning of the insured season, and (ii) allowing farmers to make premium payments flexibly in multiple transactions over an extended period. The RCT involves a sample of 1,740 farmers from four counties in Kenya, who are part of the Kenya Climate Smart Agricultural Program (KCSAP). Farmers' preferences and willingness to pay for insurance are measured using the Becker-DeGroot-Marschak (BDM) mechanism, in addition with data on time preferences, risk preferences, liquidity access, and socio-economic factors. The analysis will compare the willingness to pay for insurance, uptake rates, and preferred insured amounts between the treatment groups. The findings will contribute to understanding the impact of contract modifications on crop insurance uptake , shedding light on strategies to improve the resilience of smallholder farmers to income shocks as well as ex-ante effects on adverse selection.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Cecchi, Francesco, [email protected] Gachungi and Dahyeon Jeong. 2023. "The Right Product at the Right Time: Weather Index Insurance Adoption in Kenya." AEA RCT Registry. September 04. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.11473-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
The evaluated intervention is a crop insurance product designed and implemented by a Kenya-based agricultural microinsurance service provider, AcreAfrica. AcreAfrica offers moisture-based index insurance that covers farmers investments against adverse climatic conditions.
Intervention Start Date
2023-01-30
Intervention End Date
2023-04-01

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
➢ Preferred Sum Insured: Sum insured level preferred by smallholder farmers.
➢ WTP as a Percentage of Commercial Premium for Preferred Sum Insured
➢ WTP as a Percentage of Commercial Premium for All Sum Insured Levels
➢ Percentage of Stated WTP Transferred at the Start of Coverage Period.
➢ Compensation from insurance
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)

Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The study follows a factorial randomized control design with four arms. The sampled farmers are individually randomized into these arms and receive the same intervention, which is a rainfall-index based crop insurance offered by AcreAfrica.
In the first treatment, the timing of the insurance offer is varied. 50% of the study farmers (Group 3 and 4) have the opportunity to purchase crop insurance during the commercial offer window at the start of the long rains season in March 2023. The other 50% of farmers (Group 1 and 2) are offered the opportunity to purchase crop insurance earlier than usual, after the harvest of the immediately preceding short rains season in February 2023.
In the second treatment, the length of the premium payment window is varied. Half of the study farmers (Group 1 and 3) can only purchase the insurance at the time of the offer by paying the eligible premium for their preferred sum insured in full. The remaining half of farmers (Group 2 and 4) have the option to register for crop insurance by paying only 10% of their eligible premium at the time of the offer. These farmers are provided a flexible window from the time of the insurance offer until April 15th, 2023, to transfer the remainder of the eligible premium or increase their coverage by paying more than the eligible premium.
This factorial design allows for the evaluation of the independent and combined effects of these two treatments on farmers' insurance uptake and behavior, providing insights into the influence of timing and payment flexibility on smallholder farmers' adoption of crop insurance.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
The randomization process for assigning farmers to different treatment arms was conducted using a statistical package in a computer office. Stratified randomization was employed.
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
0
Sample size: planned number of observations
1740 farmers
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
0
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Wageningen University and Research Social Sciences Ethics Committee (SEC)
IRB Approval Date
2023-01-02
IRB Approval Number
Wageningen University and Research Social Sciences Ethics Committee (SEC): 2022-167-Kannan-2
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials