Mr. Mohamed Boussaid, the Minister of Economy and Finance claimed , Wednesday, April 16th 2014 in Casablanca that the Moroccan insurance sector progressed, during the last fifteen years, owing to the upgrade program and the adoption of a number of actions so as to improve the performances of the sector.
In the opening session of the 3rd edition’s workshops about insurance , under the theme “ What growth drivers for a sustainable development of insurance?”, Mr. Boussaid indicated that these trends particularly concerned the review of the legal frame which governs this sector, the progressive liberalization of the rates of insurances, the intensification of the distributive network of the insurance products and the encouragement of the operations of combination and consolidation of some companies of insurance, with the aim of strengthening and improving their financial base.
He claimed that through the years, the sector of insurance in Morocco kept expanding, to represent, in 2013, a penetration rate of 3 pc in 2013, which is considerably high compared with the other countries of the region noting that the Kingdom is first at the level of the Arab world and the fifth in Africa.
The minister declared that 2013 was also characterized by a volume of bonuses, which emitted a sum of about 27 billion dirhams, realized by 17 insurance companies and a reinsurance company. This enabled Morocco to take the most important place of insurance in Africa, after South Africa and the third at the level of the Arab world, behind Saudi Arabia and United Arab of Emirates.
He also recommended that the sector is currently managing an asset of more than 114 billion DH with a preponderance of rate’s assets and share assets.
In this regard, he declared that the contract schedules, signed between the professionals of the sector and the government, constitutes a concrete road map for an effective collaboration of the various actors and the stakeholders, pointing that in order to implement this wish, the government is committed to pursue the improvement of the regulatory framework governing this sector.
In this sense, a draft law containing an amendment of the insurance code gained approval last June. It aimed at instituting an obligation of certain construction insurances such as the comprehensive insurance on construction site (TRC) and the decennial liability insurance (RCD).Also to set up a legal framework for the execution of Takaful insurance.
The government wanted to endow the insurance sector with an independent regulatory authority. This is with the objective to strengthen the supervision according to the international standards and the principles of «International Association of Insurance Supervisors “(IAIS), which demands an independent regulatory and supervisory authority of this sector.
The minister added that the law establishing this authority was published in the Official Bulletin of March 20th, 2014 and will come into force upon the establishment of its management bodies.
This annual meeting, including international membership, was organized by the Moroccan Federation of insurance and reinsurance companies, under the patronage of the Ministry of Finance, gathered more than 500 insurance professionals.
The program of this meeting, extending to April,17th includes more than 8 conferences about this theme, as well as some fruitful and purposeful debates which will result in concrete proposals, allowing the insurance sector to play its thorough role in the economic and social development of Morocco.