Life insurance has evolved to become an indispensable economic and social driver and is no longer a mere financial product, amid the rapid demographic and digital transformations taking place in the Arab region, said speakers at the "Life Insurance Pricing" webinar organised by the General Arab Insurance Federation (GAIF) last week.
GAIF secretary general Chakib Abouzaid said that rising aging rates and the increasing number of workers in the informal sector pose a significant challenge to pension systems globally and in the Arab world. He also highlighted the growing demand for long-term healthcare, noting that between 3% and 10% of the population in seven countries in the Middle East and North Africa will require long-term healthcare by 2030 due to aging or disability.
Gen Re regional managing director for EMNENA, Mazen Abouchakra, explained that attracting the new generation of customers, Gen Z, requires a change in dialogue language and communication methods, stressing that digital tools enable more accurate pricing and enhanced risk management.
The Lebanese Association of Actuaries president and Lebanon’s Bancassurance Company COO and chief actuary Rita El Sokhon stressed the importance of trust between insurers and clients. She added that actuaries now play a pivoal role in balancing technical accuracy, fairness and sustainability, through more advanced and faster computational tools.
UAE’s Hayah Insurance Company CEO Mohamed Seghir pointed out that the pace of market changes is exceeding expectations, particularly given the trend among some governments to reduce support for pension systems, thus reinforcing the need for innovative and sustainable insurance solutions.
Participants agreed that digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence will revolutionise the modelling and pricing of life insurance products, despite the accompanying ethical challenges, and called on regulatory bodies to enact clear legislation to govern the use of these tools.
The GAIF webinar concluded with the following recommendations:
- Life insurance should be viewed as a long-term investment rather than an expense
- Arab countries should be encouraged to establish national actuarial societies to support specialised studies and product development
- Insurance policies should be developed using modern, flexible, and clear language
- Professional partnerships should be strengthened among all relevant parties to ensure a balance between technical accuracy, fairness, and sustainability
- Regulatory bodies should enact legislation to regulate and supervise the use of Artificial Intelligence tools.
GAIF had previously announced the formation of a specialised working group comprising leading Arab actuaries. This group is tasked with assessing the feasibility of creating Arab mortality tables that reflect the unique demographic and health characteristics of the region. This initiative is part of an action plan of the Arab Actuaries League (AAL), which operates under the Federation's umbrella, and is intended to enhance technical independence, thereby contributing to accurate pricing and the sustainable insurance products in Arab markets.
The webinar was organised by GAIF in cooperation with the AAL and attracted over 320 attendees.