Pesticide exposure, health impacts, predeterminism, and health insurance demand among Pakistani farmers: Implications for policy

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F60460709%3A41340%2F25%3A103722" target="_blank" >RIV/60460709:41340/25:103722 - isvavai.cz</a>

Result on the web

<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jafr.2025.101905" target="_blank" >https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jafr.2025.101905</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jafr.2025.101905" target="_blank" >10.1016/j.jafr.2025.101905</a>

Result language

angličtina

Original language name

Pesticide exposure, health impacts, predeterminism, and health insurance demand among Pakistani farmers: Implications for policy

Original language description

The indiscriminate use of chemical pesticides, regardless of pest infestation, is widespread in the developing world to mitigate agricultural losses. Farmers face significant health risks from pesticides, yet indemnity provision is often neglected in policy discussions. Socio-cultural factors, including religion and trust in governments, can influence indemnity demand, especially among religious communities. However, little to no attention has been given to religious predeterminism and public trust in indemnity service design. We employed a novel approach integrating count data models with contingent valuation to analyze the health impacts of pesticide use and influence of socioeconomic factors, particularly religious predeterminism and public trust, on health insurance demand among farmers in rural Pakistan. Results reveal critical health risks posed by pesticide use among farmers and highlight the limited willingness to pay for health insurance to mitigate these risks. Findings from the Negative Binomial (NB) regression model showed significant positive effects of pesticide quantity (beta = 0.607, p < 0.05), WHO Class IA-and-IB pesticides (beta = 0.420, p < 0.05), and WHO Class II pesticides (beta = 0.277, p < 0.05) on farmers' health. Religious predeterminism and public trust significantly influence farmers' willingness to pay, with only about 27 % of farmers expressing readiness to pay an average of US$4.02 per annum for health insurance. These findings emphasize the importance of tailored health insurance designs that accommodate religious beliefs. Policy initiatives should focus on educating farmers about safe pesticide use and health insurance benefits. Governments can build public trust through subsidized insurance schemes to reduce farmers' out-of-pocket health expenses. The findings emphasize the role of socio-cultural factors, in shaping insurance uptake, suggesting that health insurance policies must be tailored to align with farmers' belief systems. Government-led initiatives, including subsidized insurance schemes, are essential to enhance public trust, foster safe farming practices, and support sustainable agriculture.

Czech name

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Czech description

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Type

J_imp - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database

CEP classification

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OECD FORD branch

40101 - Agriculture

Project

—

Continuities

S - Specificky vyzkum na vysokych skolach

Publication year

2025

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

Journal of Agriculture and Food Research

ISSN

2666-1543

e-ISSN

2666-1543

Volume of the periodical

21

Issue of the periodical within the volume

JUN 2025

Country of publishing house

CZ - CZECH REPUBLIC

Number of pages

9

Pages from-to

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UT code for WoS article

001476566500001

EID of the result in the Scopus database

2-s2.0-105002664174