The question of how the increasing challenges of on-farm risk management - that e.g. result from the global climate change - could be met, has been an important subject of research for a long time. For instance, it has been discussed if index-based insurance are an alternative to classical...

Many studies quantifying individual risk preferences of test persons show that results of different measuring methods may vary. Additional reservations about the reliability of the results arise from the fact that most studies are based on convenience groups, such as students or business-men in...

Three decades after their establishment, many smallholder oil palm plantations are overmatured and will require replanting soon. Replanting offers a unique opportunity to redesign plantations, close yield gaps, boost farm productivity, and secure livelihoods. However, replanting requires...

This study investigates the relationship between financial literacy and farmers' awareness of digital credit in rural Madagascar. We apply questions that demonstrate individuals' understanding of the four fundamental concepts for financial decision making: numeracy, interest compounding,...

This paper analyses the influencing factors of farmers' use of price hedging instruments (PHIs) based upon a discrete choice experiment with German grain farmers. A mixed logit model is used to determine whether farmers' choices of PHIs against cash sales are influenced by their price...

Financial institutions still neglect to address agricultural clients. The main reasons for that are their perception that farmers bear higher risks than non-farmers and that their loan products are inadequate to accommodate the needs of agricultural entrepreneurs. As a result, many farmers still...

To date, studies dealing with the impact assessment of changing irrigation policies predominately rely on normative rational choice models that are subject to rather restrictive assumptions such as profit-maximizing behavior. However, there is increasing evidence that decision makers pursue...

This paper shows how agent-based stochastic approaches can provide a complementary and more flexible approach to study investment incentives and price dynamics in a real options framework. We particularly study the case of two-stage production chains in which one sector produces an intermediate...

In the absence of formal financial markets many poor households rely on the mutual exchange of transfers within informal risk sharing networks to protect themselves against adverse events. In this paper we present a model that explains the impact of formal insurance on informal risk sharing and,...

Mobile internet is considered one of the most important developments in information and communication technology due to its considerable effect on both the economy and our daily lives. Furthermore, mobile internet is an essential tool for overcoming the rural–urban digital divide. With respect...