In India's the Hindu, Sucharita Mukherjee, CEO of IFMR Holdings, wrote that risk management through a range of financial products can minimize losses to livelihood. "Catastrophes such as drought, floods and earthquakes not only impact the economy of a nation but also affect the very subsistence of poor and vulnerable communities," reads the Op-ed. The article also cites index insurance practices in Ghana and Mongolia, where, respectively, drought index insurance covers all the growing stages of maize and index-based livestock insurance protects livestock against particularly strong winters...

IFC will work with the Center for Agriculture and Rural Development Insurance Agency and the Pioneer Insurance and Surety Corporation to design new insurance products that aim to protect Filipino farmers against typhoon-related losses, which are estimated to have exceeded $2.5 billion since 2009. According to the 2012 World Disaster Report, the Philippines ranks as the third most disaster-prone country in the world, with an average of 20 typhoons per year. The project will enable CARD Insurance and Pioneer Insurance to offer indemnity insurance to thousands of farmers and rural entrepreneurs...