Access to Insurance Initiative Newsletter 06/2019

Welcome to our monthly newsletter, where we update you on the work of the Initiative, inform you about events and publications, and share experiences and learning on inclusive insurance regulation and supervision across jurisdictions.

Follow us on Twitter @a2ii_org where we serve you news and updates on #inclusiveinsurance.

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The first A2ii-IAIS Consultation Call took place in 2014. With developments of new lessons in the industry, by 2014 supervisors became increasingly eager to learn from each other about the latest developments in other jurisdictions. To cater to these needs, the A2ii and the IAIS launched the Consultation Call format: a series of conference calls where current regulatory and supervisory developments and trends on access to insurance are discussed. The presentations from the calls and a report that summarises discussions are published in three languages and have become a key tool for knowledge dissemination.

Recent events

The 15th A2ii – IAIS – MIN Consultative Forum on Inclusive Insurance: Climate and disaster risk: building resilience, bridging the protection gap

7 May, Panama City, Panama

The Forum provided a platform for in-depth discussions on the role of insurance providers, policymakers, regulators and supervisors in reducing the protection gap in the face of climate risk. Around 70 participants from 19 countries, representing all stakeholder groups – including supervisors and policymakers - shared their views on how cooperation between them can facilitate innovative and suitable tools to build the resilience of the most vulnerable segments of the population against natural disasters.

A comprehensive risk management strategy is needed to better deal with risk related to climate change and disasters. The strategy must include measures for risk reduction, prevention and mitigation. Insurance is only one piece of the puzzle, but a fundamental one, – were the key messages from the Forum.

Inclusive Insurance Training Program for Supervisors

7 – 10 May, Bangkok, Thailand

Thirty-one supervisors from the Asian region and Africa (Lao PDR, Kenya, Timor Leste, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia, Nepal and Thailand) joined the Inclusive Insurance Training Program for Supervisors in Bangkok, Thailand. The training was jointly organised by the A2ii, the ASEAN Insurance Training and Research Institute (AITRI), the IAIS and the Toronto Centre, and hosted by the Office of Insurance Commission Thailand.

Supervisors enjoyed expert presentations based on the IAIS Applications Paper on Inclusive Insurance Supervision and Regulation in addition to concrete case studies and recent practices of selected jurisdictions that have advanced in the field of inclusive insurance. Participants also exchanged experiences from their own countries and worked together with the trainers to develop concrete action plans to advance inclusive insurance market growth in their own jurisdictions.

Policy Dialogue “Accelerating Insurance Market Development in West and Central Africa”

14 - 15 May, Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire

Forty participants from supervisory authorities, insurance companies, brokers, development partners and training institutes participated in the Policy Dialogue that provided room for lively discussions. Topics covered included: supervisors’ role in developing markets, infrastructure insurance, climate risk insurance, digital technologies and SME insurance. The A2ii presented supervisory trends in inclusive insurance supervisions.

IAIS-A2ii Consultation Call on Bridging the Gender Gap: The Role of the Insurance Supervisor

23 May

This consultation call explored key issues regarding financial inclusion barriers for women, mainstreaming gender and targeting women, the insurance supervisor's role and how regulators can make a difference in bridging the gender gap. On this call, experts from the Women’s World Banking; Gilles Renouil, Shilpi Shastri and Maria Sanchez-Smith and from the Toronto Centre; Michelle Chong-Tai Bell delivered expert input. Andrea Camargo presented the expert inputs in the French call and the second expert presentation in the Spanish call. They were joined by Hery Njaka Rakotorimanana from Service des institutions financières- Ministère des Finances (Madagascar), María Augusta de Queiroz Alves from SUSEP (Brazil) and Malena Kramer from SSN (Argentina) who presented the case study inputs and shared experiences from their jurisdictions in the French call and Spanish call respectively.

For supervisors who couldn’t attend this call, the presentations and report of this call is be available here. Supervisors can also direct questions on this topic to consultation.call@a2ii.org, and we will ensure your questions are addressed.

The Asian Forum of Insurance Regulators (AFIR) 14th Annual Meeting & Conference “Promoting Broader and Sustainable Insurance Market with Effective Supervisory Practices”,

22 – 24 May, Macao

This event was hosted by the Monetary Authority of Macao and attended by about 50 representatives from insurance regulators and international organisations.

The A2ii presented on “What the Protection Gap Means to Regulators and the Insurance Industry”. The A2ii then moderated a panel on “Regulation and Supervision Supporting Inclusive Insurance”, where insurance regulators from Thailand, Malaysia and Chinese Taipei discussed their experience in taking regulatory and policy measures to close the protection gap in their markets.

A central theme of the conference was the protection gap: participants agreed that all countries grapple with the protection gap, be it in agricultural microinsurance, life insurance, healthcare for the ageing or climate risk. In parallel, supervisors have to increasingly manage the challenge of emerging technology. Presenters and panellists discussed their approaches and the evolving role of supervisors against this dynamic backdrop.

Upcoming events

16th Consultative Forum on Climate and Disaster Risk - Climate and disaster risk: building resilience, bridging the protection gap

12 - 13 June, Johannesburg, South Africa

The Consultative Forum will explore how insurance providers, policymakers, insurance regulators and supervisors can collaborate to reduce the protection gap and help to build resilience in the face of climate risk and natural disasters. The 16th Consultative Forum provides a platform for dialogue between these stakeholders, as well as the opportunity to meet with and learn from colleagues and experts involved in climate change from Africa and other regions.

The forum will be organised by The International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), the African Insurance Organisation (AIO), the InsuResilience Global Partnership, the Access to Insurance Initiative (A2ii) and the Microinsurance Network (MiN). It will take place alongside the 46th Conference and Annual General Assembly of the African Insurance Organisation (9-12 June 2019).

For more information, please refer to the link here.

Capacity Building for Insurance Supervisors - Leveraging Actuarial Skills

5 – 9 August, Jakarta, Indonesia

The Training “Capacity Building for Insurance Supervisors - Leveraging Actuarial Skills” jointly organised by the International Actuarial Association, the International Association of Insurance Supervisors, the Access to Insurance Initiative and the ASEAN Insurance Training and Research Institute, hosted by OJK Indonesia and funded by the UK Department for International Development.

The training aims at strengthening the understanding and application of actuarial concepts and tools needed to support effective insurance supervision and regulation.

The focus and approach of the training will be on teaching principles while making the training as practical and simple as possible. The training techniques will involve a range of lecture-based sessions, case studies, breakout sessions and quizzes.

For more information and the registration form, please refer to the link.