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Targeting and Informal Insurance

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  • Ethan Ligon

Abstract

The standard method of testing for efficient risk-sharing in village economies does not allow one to identify vulnerable households, only to make statements about the average risk in the village, or of sub-groups identifiable on the basis of observables. Here, by working directly with inter-household consumption correlations we are able to identify households, which are probably exposed to unusually high amount of idiosyncratic risk. An obvious use for this identifying information involves targeted interventions to help those households.

Suggested Citation

  • Ethan Ligon, 2002. "Targeting and Informal Insurance," WIDER Working Paper Series DP2002-08, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    • Handle: RePEc:unu:wpaper:dp2002-08
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    Cited by:

    1. Ligon, Ethan & Schechter, Laura, 2012. "Motives for sharing in social networks," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 99(1), pages 13-26.
    2. Krislert Samphantharak & Robert Townsend, 2016. "Risk and Return in Village Economies," PIER Discussion Papers 27, Puey Ungphakorn Institute for Economic Research.
    3. Stefan Dercon, 2002. "Income Risk, Coping Strategies, and Safety Nets," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 17(2), pages 141-166, September.
    4. Ligon, Ethan, 2006. "Poverty and the welfare costs of risk associated with globalization," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 34(8), pages 1446-1457, August.
    5. Matthew Jowett, 2004. "Theoretical insights into the development of health insurance in low-income countries," Working Papers 188chedp, Centre for Health Economics, University of York.
    6. Krislert Samphantharak & Robert M. Townsend, 2018. "Risk and Return in Village Economies," American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 10(1), pages 1-40, February.
    7. Gisele Kamanou & Jonathan Morduch, 2002. "Measuring Vulnerability to Poverty," WIDER Working Paper Series DP2002-58, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    8. Heemskerk, Marieke & Norton, Anastasia & de Dehn, Lise, 2004. "Does Public Welfare Crowd Out Informal Safety Nets? Ethnographic Evidence from Rural Latin America," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 32(6), pages 941-955, June.
    9. Rasmus Heltberg & Ana Mar�a Oviedo & Faiyaz Talukdar, 2015. "What do Household Surveys Really Tell Us about Risk, Shocks, and Risk Management in the Developing World?," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 51(3), pages 209-225, March.
    10. Skoufias, Emmanuel & Quisumbing, Agnes R., 2004. "Consumption insurance and vulnerability to poverty : a synthesis of the evidence from Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Mali, Mexico and Russia," Social Protection Discussion Papers and Notes 29141, The World Bank.
    11. Santos, Paulo & Barrett, Christopher B., 2006. "Informal Insurance in the Presence of Poverty Traps: Evidence from Southern Ethiopia," 2006 Annual Meeting, August 12-18, 2006, Queensland, Australia 25487, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    12. Raghav Gaiha & Katsushi Imai, 2008. "Measuring Vulnerability and Poverty: Estimates for Rural India," WIDER Working Paper Series RP2008-40, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    13. Katsushi Imai & Thankom Arun, 2008. "Does Microfinance Reduce Poverty in India?," Economics Discussion Paper Series 0814, Economics, The University of Manchester.

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