Representatives of Algeria’s insurance industry met officials of the Ministry of Finance in July on the need for reform of the sector, according to Algerian Union of Insurance and Reinsurance Companies (UAR) vice president and insurer Alliance Assurances CEO Hassen Khelifati.
Commenting on the meeting, he said that progress has been achieved on several issues, in particular, the need for an independent regulatory agency for the insurance sector, digitalisation and the sale of insurance on credit.
“By September, we will finalise a paper on the reform proposals and submit it to the public authorities, so that it can be finalised at the level of the SGG (General Secretariat of the Government) and be submitted to the Council of Ministers and Parliament,” he told local media.
Currently, there are several points of consensus between the various parties concerned, the UAR, the National Insurance Council (CNA) and the representatives of the Ministry of Finance, he said.
In an interview in June by the Algerian Centre for Economic Diplomacy, Mr Khelifati said that the COVID-19 pandemic and related lockdowns had revealed the degree of urgency in digitalisation in the insurance sector as well as the need to deal with new risks that pose new challenges.
He said that reform is needed to create conditions for healthy competition. At present, the market is dominated by state-owned insurers that enjoy business from major public and private economic players, leaving private-sector insurers struggling and trying to gain ground. In addition, unhealthy practices, such as dumping, hinder the development of the sector.
There is a total of 24 (re)insurance companies operating in Algeria at present, comprising 13 property insurance companies, eight life insurance players, one reinsurer, one export credit insurance company and one real estate mortgage insurer. M