Event Information

Drought tolerant maize varieties are effective in raising yields and smoothing the risks brought on by climate change. But what happens when the droughts are too severe and that seed technology fails? What else can be done to mitigate the impacts of drought-induced crop failure? 

Researchers lead by the University of California, Davis in partnership with CIMMYT and local private sector seed and insurance companies, merged seed and financial innovations to generate expanded farmer protections, increased yields, and opportunities for growth. 

Results from the project, which spanned Tanzania and Mozambique, indicate that drought tolerant maize seeds provided significant protections against yield losses when mid-season drought hit. In cases of extreme drought when even the hybrid seeds failed, insurance payments were triggered, which had immediate positive effects on farmer coping strategies. Additionally, the presence of insurance built up the resiliency of farmers the year after the shock, both allowing them to fully recover and even produce higher yields than in previous years.

Join us as we spend the morning discussing results from this dual country, multi-year research project. Presenters will provide evidence, context, and suggestions for scale. 

Speakers include:

• Steve Boucher – Professor, University of California, Davis
• Michael Carter – Director, Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Markets, Risk and Resilience
• Greg Collins – Deputy Assistant Administrator and USAID Resilience Coordinator, USAID
• Ghada Elabed – Economist, Agricultural General Practice, World Bank
• Olaf Erenstein – Director, Socioeconomics Program, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT)
• Jerry Glover, Senior Sustainable Agriculture Advisor, USAID
• Travis Lybbert, Professor, University of California, Davis
• Paswel Marenya – Senior economist, Socioeconomics Program, CIMMYT
• Israel Muchena – Director, Agriculture Insurance Division at Hollard Insurance, Mozambique
• Laura Paul – Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Delaware

Lunch is provided. There is no cost associated with this event, but registration is required. 

Additional event information, including the agenda, will be available on our website shortly. Please visit: https://basis.ucdavis.edu

If you have any questions about this event, feel free to email Sophie Javers at sejavers(at)ucdavis.edu