Abstract

The study, conducted among maize farmers in the Nanumba North District of the Northern Region of Ghana, examined the willingness of smallholder farmers to participate in the market for drought index crop insurance.A total of 100 farmers participated in the study.The study employed the logistic regression analysis to predict decision to participate in crop insurance. Quantitative and qualitative data collection methods wereemployed to allow for triangulation. These included questionnaires, focus group discussions and key informant interviews.The results demonstrate that access to credit, education and experience of other forms of insurance are the most important determinants of farmers’ willingness to participate in crop insurance.Total damage incurred also increased the probability of decision to participate, whereas return period of disaster event in the past and number of non-nature dependent income sources reduce the probability of decision to participate in crop insurance. The results emphasize the need to integrate crop insurance into micro-finance to enhance buy-in by farmers. Mass education via Radio and television are keys to improving access to information on crop insurance by farmers. However, significant investment in education in rural areas is critical, in the long term, to ensure the adoption of crop insurance.

Keywords:Crop insurance, climate change, participation, weather-indexed insurance, agriculture, climate change, adaptation, maize, farmers.