IDF Report Looks at Global Insurance Solutions

The Insurance Development Forum (IDF), a public/private partnership led by the insurance industry and with the United Nations, World Bank and other international organisations from the public sector as members, has reflected on a landmark year with the release of its Annual Report – 2021 in Review.

During 2021, the IDF and its members and partners – totalling 90 global industry experts active on country projects; 50 United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) officials working across country projects; and 17 Governments in direct discussion on programmes – delivered significant policy and operational impact.

Across multiple events including the IDF Summit in June 2021 and COP26 in November 2021, the IDF and its members and partners demonstrated the crucial role that insurers and reinsurers must and can play in addressing the adaptation and resilience challenge in the future.

Key announcements and events focused on addressing the financial protection gap, the importance of risk and resilience analytics and much-needed access to insurance-based risk modelling capabilities to help spur tangible action.

Key announcements during 2021 included:

• May 2021: IDF launched its Tripartite Project for the City of Medellin, Colombia.
• September 2021: The IDF and the Vulnerable 20 (V20) Group of 55 climate-vulnerable Ministers of Finance announced their intention to advance on the creation of the Global Risk Modelling Alliance (GRMA) by COP26 in Glasgow and called on the G7 and the G20 to support this effort.
• November 2021: The signing of the agreement between the IDF and the V20 at COP26 to build risk analytics capability where it is needed the most – paving the way for the creation of the global public-private partnership programme, GRMA.
• November 2021: The IDF jointly established the Global Resilience Index Initiative (GRII), a multi-partner initiative launched at COP26 Adaptation Day.
• November 2021: The IDF strengthened its partnership with the Start Network. The IDF announced its support for Start Ready, a new humanitarian financing facility, which is launching at COP26.

Denis Duverne, IDF Steering Committee Chair and Chairman of the Board at AXA, said:

“2021 has been an important year for climate action in general, culminating with COP26. Glasgow highlighted an escalating urgency and an accelerating demand for risk mitigation, but also adaptation, which was put under the spotlight with a much stronger focus than in the past.

Looking ahead to 2022, there are a number of transformational initiatives to be further developed, including on anticipatory action and disaster risk reduction, the Net Zero Insurance Alliance, and the Crisis Lookout campaign to boost pre-arranged humanitarian financing.