Insurers, reinsurers and insurance industry stakeholders discussed three main challenges facing the industry at the 15th Insurance Rendez-Vous de Carthage held in early February on the island of Djerba in Tunisia.
In his address, General Arab Insurance Federation (GAIF) secretary-general Chakib Abouzaid said that the incidence of cyber attacks, epidemics and natural disasters had surged in the last two decades, forcing the industry to scramble to find insurance solutions to these risks.
He pointed out that several MENA countries were affected by natural disasters in 2021. Algeria, Morocco, Sudan, Oman, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Egypt were hit by floods; Oman and the UAE were lashed by the tropical storm Shaheen; while Algeria, Lebanon and Morocco were exposed to forest fires.
He added that the first challenge facing the insurance sector is to form Nat CAT models that would enable the industry to anticipate and prepare for disasters.
The second challenge is to find insurance coverage for natural and environmental disasters, epidemics and cyber attacks.
The third challenge lies in obtaining the necessary funds for prevention measures and reparations related to disasters and cyber attacks.
He also pointed out that the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated a lack of preparedness globally.
GAIF’s tasks
At the rendezvous, GAIF president Lassad Zarrouk said the federation was redoubling its efforts to confront the multiple challenges in the Arab insurance market and to make optimal use of the great potential offered by the digital boom to develop the insurance sector by providing appropriate solutions.
He said that employees in the insurance and reinsurance sector, investors, supervisors and observers alike, should work hand-in-hand to manage the risks faced and to provide cover.
Mr Zarrouk proposed staging an annual conference on digital transformation in cooperation with the Tunisian Federation of Insurance Companies (FTUSA) and GAIF given that the fourth industrial revolution has become a tangible reality that requires an intellectual and cultural shift that forces the insurance sector to change the way it deals traditionally with risks.
The Rendez-Vous de Carthage was held in collaboration with GAIF, the FTUSA and the Tunisian Reinsurance Company, under the auspices of the Ministry of Finance. M