We present the results of an experiment introducing commercial rainfall index insurance into drought-plagued farming cooperatives in Amhara State, Ethiopia. We introduce a market-priced rainfall deficit insurance product through producer cooperatives, and test a number of potential ways to kick-start private demand. Takeup of the insurance at market prices is very low, between .5% and 3% across seasons, but a low-cost promotion at baseline increases willingness to pay for multiple seasons. When we use a randomized experiment to distribute small free insurance contracts to farmers, 39% of subsidized individuals enroll but this fails to stimulate input use, yields, or income, and nor does it enhance demand in subsequent seasons. Our experience in interlinking credit with insurance shows that while serious logistical challenges need to be overcome, real demand can exist for state-contingent credit in this context.

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商业降雨指数保险的影响：来自埃塞俄比亚的实验证据

我们展示了将商业降雨指数保险引入埃塞俄比亚阿姆哈拉州遭受干旱困扰的农业合作社的实验结果。我们通过生产合作社推出了一种市场定价的降雨赤字保险产品，并测试了多种潜在的方式来启动私人需求。以市场价格购买保险的比例非常低，跨季节在 0.5% 到 3% 之间，但基线的低成本促销增加了为多个季节支付的意愿。当我们使用随机实验向农民分发小额免费保险合同时，39% 的受补贴个人加入，但这并不能刺激投入使用、产量或收入，也不会增加后续季节的需求。我们将信贷与保险联系起来的经验表明，虽然需要克服严重的后勤挑战，