Kathmandu. In the list of functions, duties and rights of the Insurance Authority determined by the Insurance Act, 2079, the study and research related to insurance is also an important responsibility.
As a regulator, the research and research carried out by the Insurance Authority will contribute significantly to understanding the state of the insurance sector in Nepal and in the decisions to be made, policies and strategies for the future. For the last 2 years, the research work related to insurance has come to a standstill at the NRA.
Research for limited selfish purposes only
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So far, there have been two motives behind the investigation conducted by the Insurance Authority. First, to cooperate in the research as per the terms and conditions of the foreign donor organization. The second is to conduct so-called investigations to create an environment for the issuance of licenses of any kind of insurer.
The research was conducted with the help of Micro Insurance in Nepal UK Aid. After that, the NRA had formed a study committee twice for the purpose of distributing the license of the re-insurer and for the purpose of distributing the license of the micro insurer. Apart from these two, the authority has not been able to conduct research to achieve the objective.
The investigation was carried out during the tenure of the then chairman of NEA, Surya Prasad Silwal. The Agriculture Report 2078, the Research Report on the impact of coronavirus pandemic in insurance sector, 2020 and the research report on reinsurance, 2019 are available in the public domain on the NRA’s website.
Death Table
For the last 7 years, the NRA has been collecting data from life insurers for research to revise the death rate schedule, but this work has not moved ahead yet. The years-old mortality chart has not been able to present a realistic picture of the life expectancy of the insured in the life insurance sector of Nepal.
Nepal’s life insurance market, which was dependent on the mortality chart of the Indian insurance market, got the first death rate chart issued by the then Insurance Board in 2066 BS. Even after 16 years, Nepal’s life insurance market is still using this mortality chart.
Gender Identity Based Research
Currently, the Insurance Authority is conducting research on life insurance on the basis of gender identity. The NRA has started research on this issue with the terms and conditions of the donor organizations and the grant support. For this, the authority has been collecting details related to the insured from the insurers in the format provided by the donor institutions. In this process, details about the number of insured men and women, sum assured, term of insurance, premium premium, geographical region, etc. are being collected. However, the report has not been made public.
Signing of the MoU for the investigation
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An agreement was signed between the Insurance Authority and the Central Department of Economics of Tribhuvan University to conduct research on insurance. The MoU was signed for a period of four years. Judging by the progress so far, it is unlikely that the NRA will receive any investigation report until the expiry of the agreement period.
Research Branch
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The Authority has included both the division and the specialized section under it in its organizational structure, giving priority to the responsibility of research. A Statistics and Research Section has been set up under Supervision, Agriculture and Micro Insurance and Re-sickness Research Division. This section is engaged in the collection, collection and analysis of information related to insurance.
The authority has been publishing insurance reflections on a monthly basis to make public the data about the business of insurance companies and the regulatory action of the authority.
Research in the Five-Year Strategic Plan
NEA’s second five-year strategic plan (Strategic Plan 2023-2027) has also included lack of research among the weak points in the development of Nepal’s insurance sector. According to the strategic plan, the eighth of the eight main objectives for the development of the insurance sector will focus on research and development in insurance-related issues.
The strategic pillar states that the strategy will be implemented and the objectives will be completed from 2023 to 2027 and the report will be published. Even after entering the third year of publishing the strategic plan, the authority has not been able to conduct research for any purpose other than the distribution of license to the insurer.
Although the authority has set the deadline from 2023 to 2026 for the development of the insurance sector and to publish the report, there is no progress in the research as only one year and three months are left for the deadline.
Apart from this, it has mentioned that it will help in increasing the capacity of insurance intermediaries and insurance service providers through research and report publication. No research has been carried out to directly assist either of these stakeholders or the report has been published.
According to NEA Research Division Chief and Director Pujan Dhungel (Adhikari), the authority is investigating the condition of the insurance in the entire hydro sector. “All the data has been received”, she said, adding, “Now we will prepare a research report after conducting further study.” Maybe it will be ready after Tihar. ’
Dhungel said that preparations are being made to investigate the status of insurance in one or two other areas. “We are not sitting idle, we are doing it,” she said.
