 **This event is now closed. Watch the recordings and download the event material in the [members' area](https://microinsurancenetwork.org/member-resources/expert-forum-do-no-harm-the-argument-for-quality-standards-and-certification-of-index-based-insurance).** Risk management and resilience are becoming a focus for how to support and empower agricultural households who are vulnerable to weather-related shocks. Index insurance has shown tremendous promise where conventional agricultural insurance is not possible or cost-effective, but this promise can only be reached with high-quality contracts that genuinely protect households. Currently, the quality of index insurance products is unregulated. Farmer households have no way to tell whether an insurance contract will leave them worse off than having no insurance at all. Standard economic and statistical tools make it possible to establish a Minimum Quality Standard (MQS) to secure vulnerable households and to safeguard markets for future higher-quality contracts. By testing and providing quality certification for index insurance products, many of the current difficulties with microinsurance uptake, such as farmer distrust and compromised markets, could be overcome. The careful, context-specific design of index insurance products, and establishment of standards and a certification process are vital aspects to ensuring client-focused inclusive insurance opportunities. This 90-minute Expert Forum will focus specifically on the work that the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Markets, Risk and Resilience is conducting on creating Minimum Quality Standards for index-based insurance, explain the rationale behind quality certification and why exactly it should matter to farmers, government policymakers, insurance regulators, insurance companies, and international donor organisations. Join the conversation on **Thursday, 15 July at 4pm CEST** with representatives of different stakeholder groups in East Africa and find out how this could apply to your region/country of focus. **The event will be held in English with simultaneous interpretation into Spanish.**