GFIA Annual Report 2022-2023

DIVERSITY, EQUITY & INCLUSION

Principles, partnerships and promotion

GFIA publishes principles as it pursues partnerships and promotes DEI actions

By Francisco Astelarra, chair of the GFIA DEI Working Group

Insurers are in the business of supporting people and businesses should an adverse event occur. To effectively assess and manage risks, we need a deep understanding of the diverse factors that contribute to them. So, a diverse workforce can facilitate the better understanding and evaluation of these risks.

The global (re)insurance sector is therefore committed to ensuring a more cohesive, diverse and effective workforce. More diverse companies are better equipped to attract the best talent and improve employee satisfaction, engagement and decision-making, which in turn could lead to more commercial success, creativity and innovation.

Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is also crucial for creating more accessible markets. A more diverse industry better reflects the communities it serves, fostering trust and building stronger relationships with clients. When people see themselves and their experiences represented in the insurance industry, it enhances their confidence in its ability to understand and address their needs.

“A more diverse industry better reflects the communities it serves.”

“When people see themselves and their experiences represented in the insurance industry, it enhances their confidence in its ability to understand and address their needs.”

International leadership

GFIA considers DEI as one of its priority issues and has actively engaged with the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), the G20 and other international organisations and standard-setters on this topic. In fact, since its creation in 2012, GFIA’s Financial Inclusion Working Group has extensively advocated the importance of all individuals and businesses having access to useful and affordable insurance products and services that meet their needs.

Traditionally, financial inclusion was viewed as an issue for developing countries. However, over time, there has also been growing interest in the issue in developed countries, especially regarding the inclusion of vulnerable and underserved populations.

This was, for example, demonstrated in 2015, when world leaders adopted the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with the aim of achieving a better and more sustainable future for people and the world by 2030. Diversity and inclusion are essential components of these Development Goals. They are reflected in SDG 10 (Reduced inequalities) and SDG 5 (Gender equality), which aim to promote social, economic and political inclusion and ensure equal opportunities for all, irrespective of gender, age, ethnicity, origin, religion, economic status or disability. In addition, SDG 8 (Decent work and economic growth) embodies the values of diversity and inclusion, as this calls for equal pay for work of equal value and the promotion of safe and inclusive working environments.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 5, 8 and 10

Fruitful dialogue with IAIS

GFIA and the IAIS have always been in close contact on DEI issues. The IAIS was among the first international standard-setters to focus on the topic of financial inclusion, by creating the Access to Insurance Initiative together with other international organisations in 2009. In 2021, the IAIS added DEI as a key strategic theme in its work programme. It also issued a statement recognising the importance of DEI in insurance supervision.

Subsequently, the IAIS Governance Working Group and Market Conduct Working Group were tasked with examining what actions IAIS member supervisors, other international organisations and the insurance industry itself are taking to advance DEI in the sector. As part of this process, I was invited by the two groups to present GFIA’s Inclusive Insurance Survey in September 2022.

The GFIA Inclusive Insurance Survey was first published in March 2022. Based on responses from 21 GFIA members from 22 countries, it reveals actions and good practices by insurers, insurance associations and policymakers in boosting financial inclusion, particularly for women. The document is intended to be periodically updated.

Our fruitful discussions continued with my participation in a DEI panel at the IAIS Annual Conference in November 2022 and my participation, together with many working group members, in the stakeholder session on its December 2022 DEI stocktake and future work in February 2023. The IAIS stocktake report looked at work on DEI already being undertaken by insurance supervisors, international organisations and the insurance industry, with a view to identifying areas where the IAIS could do further work.

New working group mandate

GFIA Inclusive Insurance Survey

To reflect its commitment to advancing DEI in the global (re)insurance industry, the GFIA Financial Inclusion Working Group expanded its work and advocacy on DEI and was renamed the DEI Working Group in November 2022.

Its first action was to develop a set of principles on DEI together with the GFIA Market Conduct and Governance Working Groups, which were published in March 2023.

The GFIA principles acknowledge the importance of diverse and inclusive workplaces as key elements for the sector’s growth, innovativeness and sustainability. They show insurers’ commitment to supporting and promoting DEI policies that are based on the key principle of valuing each individual and respecting differences and cultural diversity in the workplace. These policies must ensure that there are structures and mechanisms in place that foster equality, diversity, inclusion and non-discrimination.

Education plays a vital role in advancing DEI within insurance. GFIA has members that are undertaking efforts to support financial education, advance DEI and raise insurance penetration to help build developing economies. The GFIA DEI Working Group is currently also looking at broadening the scope of its Inclusive Insurance Survey, with the aim of collecting new actions and good practices by its members in relation to diversity, equity and the inclusion of vulnerable groups that markets or players could take inspiration from.

Industry-wide collaborations and partnerships also play an important role in advancing DEI in the sector. We have had several meetings with Katharine Pulvermacher, executive director of the Microinsurance Network (MIN), to explore possibilities for cooperation. The MIN is an international, multi-stakeholder platform for experts to work together on key areas of development in inclusive insurance and several GFIA members are already part of the network.

More work to be done

GFIA recognises that more still needs to be done to advance DEI in the sector. I personally believe that advancing DEI is essential to the success of the global (re)insurance industry.

Everyone should play their part in promoting inclusion. However, when it comes to complex societal changes, binding targets are not the solution. (Re)insurers, together with social parties, are best placed to design their own DEI initiatives that work in the real world and respond to the needs of different groups of workers and consumers across the world.

GFIA DEI principles

Francisco Astelarra

FIDES (Interamerican Federation of Insurance Companies)

Francisco Astelarra

FIDES (Interamerican Federation of Insurance Companies)

Print version

Awareness-raising campaigns

Insurers across Europe are involved in a broad range of awareness-raising campaigns. For instance, in Germany, risk-awareness campaigns are implemented jointly by state authorities, consumer protection organisations, the insurance industry, architects and other stakeholders. Their collaboration is built around a common goal: to raise awareness of the effects of climate change and natural hazards, of the benefits of loss prevention, and of best practices as regards natural catastrophe-resilient buildings. The high level of risk awareness in Germany is one of the reasons for the relatively low protection gap; indeed, the insurance penetration rate for natural perils such as storm or hail is more than 90%.
Most European insurance associations have initiatives to raise risk awareness, such as dedicated workshops, events and educational seminars, as well as frequent in-depth articles, themed newsletters, presentations and other publications.
Many French insurers have launched prevention campaigns and also support the campaigns of “Assurance Prévention”, an association founded by the French insurance association (France Assureurs). Assurance Prévention has produced numerous leaflets, infographics, quizzes, etc. to raise awareness of natural risks. Through its initiatives, it aims to develop a “culture of risk prevention” among students and teachers.

The Greek insurance association (HAIC) launched a digital awareness campaign — “Better to know than to think you know” — to provide consumers with useful information about private insurance and to set the record straight on some misperceptions. The campaign consists of six videos to educate the public about how private insurance works. Most of the videos emphasise the need for resilience in the face of natcat risks and the role of insurers in protecting private property. The videos are hosted on the interactive iknow-insurance.gr platform, which allows visitors to do a short quiz to test their knowledge of private insurance and then obtain additional information.
Insurance Sweden is currently working with its members on a common methodology for calculating carbon dioxide emissions during building repairs. The aim is to raise awareness of the impact on CO2 emissions of rebuilding after fire or water damage, and thus of the importance, from that perspective as well, of preventing such damages.
Insurance Sweden published a statistical report in October 2021 on how different municipalities and regions have been affected by damage caused by flooding, storm and fire.
Spotlighting the central role of municipalities in climate-change adaptation, Insurance Sweden ranks Swedish municipalities according to their adaptation work. The methodology is based on the European Commission’s Adaption Support Tool (2013). The ranking is released every other year, the June 2021 version is available here.
UNESPA, the Spanish insurance association, launched a dedicated website in October 2021 — “Naturalmente Protegidos” (Naturally protected) to explain how natcat insurance works in Spain. It focuses on 10 different risks (rain, flood, wind, drought, frost, hail, snow, earthquake, volcanic eruption and lightning) and details for each how insurance covers property, life, harvests and livestock. The website illustrates the success of the Spanish public-private natcat insurance model. It was jointly developed by private insurers (UNESPA), the Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros (CCS) government scheme and Agroseguro, Spain’s agricultural insurance system, and was launched within the framework of Estamos Seguros, UNESPA’s financial education campaign (running since 2016).
In collaboration with CEPYME, the Spanish confederation of SMEs, UNESPA launched in October 2020 “Prevenir para crecer” (Prevent to grow), a website with information on insurance for SMEs. The website highlights potential risks to which SMEs are exposed, including natcat-related risks, and provides advice on how to prevent them.
Insurance Ireland, the Irish insurance association, and a number of Irish insurers have launched consumer blogs and information repositories on their websites to share useful information with consumers about responsible and ESG investing.

Education

The European insurance industry works to increase financial literacy in relation to risk awareness, insurance protection and long-term savings:

The Croatian Insurance Bureau (HUO) launched a first educational project in 2009, “Financial literacy in the Republic of Croatia”, which was followed by a range of educational activities, often implemented jointly with independent insurers. One of these activities, “Safer Tomorrow”, was initiated in 2021, and aims to raise citizens’ awareness of the benefits of insurance. Within the framework of the project, HUO launched several videos and infographics, some of which specifically target young people.
The HUO organises a yearly competition for the best scientific paper, the best graduate thesis and the best undergraduate thesis in the field of insurance. HUO also publishes the “Croatian magazine for INSURANCE”, a scientific journal for professionals to advance good practice in the sector. Finally, some insurers in Croatia created a colouring book for children to promote financial literacy at a young age in a fun and simple way.
In Italy, the ANIA Academy, together with CeTIF (Research Centre on Technologies, Innovation and Finance of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore), launched the second edition (2022) of the 2nd level master’s in insurance management to train professionals and enable them to respond to the challenges of the “new normal”.
ANIA is also collaborating with LUISS Business School to develop a major course in insurance management as part of its Executive Master in Financial Management.
Insurance Europe produces information for consumers as part of its “InsureWisely” financial education initiative. This includes one-pagers on different insurance topics, including how to limit the effects of natural catastrophes.
The French insurance association (France Assureurs) developed a series of educational booklets within the framework of EDUCFI (the French national strategy for economic, budgetary, and financial education), an initiative launched by the French Central Bank. These booklets help users to better understand how insurance works and what insurance products do and do not cover.
The Spanish insurance association (UNESPA) set up a financial education programme for schools, “El Riesgo y Yo” (“The Risk and I”). It involves 40 insurance undertakings and 164 volunteers and aims to give 2 500 teenage school students basic financial knowledge and insights into risk management.