(Bloomberg) — On his four and a half acres of land in central Pakistan, Izhar ul-Haq approaches farming as a science. He knows the precise acidity of the soil and the exact amount of brackish groundwater his crops can tolerate if mixed with water from the canals that snake through his wheat and cotton fields.
When he’s not working the plot, Izhar, 30, studies YouTube videos for new strategies to combat the water scarcity and high temperatures that plague Pakistan’s agricultural heartland. Shifting growing seasons and frequent droughts exacerbated by climate change mean that “old farming techniques don’t work anymore,” he says.
Yet, all that careful research won’t protect Izhar against heavy financial losses if a climate disaster strikes — like in 2022, when record floods decimated much of Pakistan’s farmland. None of his crops are insured. He’s never purchased commercial coverage, in part because his religion discourages it. Such contracts contain an element of interest, which is forbidden under Islamic law to prevent exploitative contracts.
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