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THE Asian Development Bank wants to see a much stronger Philippine
insurance system and has recommended that the charter of the
Insurance Commission be amended.
Jaseem Ahmed, ADB director, said the Bangko
Sentral ng Pilipinas should be the standard for regulators, adding
the insurance agency is in need of skilled sources and financial
resources.
“IC has shown some improvements but what we
would like to see is for it to become a much stronger institution.
In the long term, there should be amendments to its charter. Its
single biggest weakness is that it lacks protection from
prosecution,” Ahmed told reporters.
Ahmed said the insurance industry will benefit
from strengthening the commission, adding that consumers should be
protected and beneficiaries not be cheated always.
IC should improve its supervision, monitoring
and surveillance, he added.
Eiichi Sasaki, ADB financial sector specialist,
said IC should strengthen its monitoring in capital adequacy, fund
management and collection of insurance premium.
Currently, the Philippines has one of the lowest
insurance penetration rate in Asia. Insular Life Assurance Co. said
among countries in the region, the Philippines spends the least on
insurance.
-- Chino S. Leyco
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