UAE Insurance sector expected to double by 2010

Insurance sector in the UAE is expected to double by 2010 along with its demand for new employees, according to Emirates Insurance Association, an umbrella organisation for US$3 insurance companies operating in the country.

Sheikh Faisal bin Khalid Al Qasimi, chairman, Emirates Insurance Association, said yesterday: "The UAE is witnessing growth rate of 15 to 20 per cent annually in the insurance business as its traditional role is to support and underpin the development of all sectors of the economy.

As the UAE opens up the insurance sector, international insurers are looking to enter (it). This will increase job opportunities, intensify competition and bring new products and services and help the UAE insurance industry to mature. Local companies, however, are firmly established and strong enough to weather the change.”

He said the announcement of the new regulations to govern the insurance sector that will realign it with international norms and standards is eagerly anticipated. Even as the UAE opens up the insurance sector, international insurers looking to get in will have to measure up to certain benchmarks.

Only those insurers having the backing of an ‘A' rating from an international credit rating agency can expect to get invited to the UAE, he said, adding that some of the big international insurers have made a preliminary check on market conditions in the UAE and will enter the market in the near future, he explained.

He predicted that the insurance sector in the UAE is on the verge of witnessing a sustained high growth phase and efforts are being made to augment the involvement of Emirati youth in this important sector of the economy. "The UAE has the largest number of insurance companies in the AGCC, but has a nationalisation level of only 5.3 per cent.”

Specific business lines such as healthcare, life assurance, construction insurance and Islamic insurance are growing at a rapid pace in the UAE. For an industry listing US$3 companies and over 3,500 employees, that fact that nationals do not represent a significant presence is a serious issue, he said. Sheikh Faisal said that the Emirates Insurance Association will target an Emiratisation level of 15 per cent in the UAE insurance sector by 2010 and in preparation for this goal, it will encourage the addition of at least 500 Emarati youth to be employed in the sector by the end of this year.

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