Exciting times.

Summary: The seventh World Takaful Conference kicked off with a special opening keynote plenary session, during which Hussein Al Meeza, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Islamic Insurance and Reinsurance Company (AMAN), gave a heartfelt welcome to a new era for Takaful

"T hese are truly exciting times for the global Takaful industry, as the market reached $12 billion in 2011 according to a recent Ernest and Young report," Al Meeza said. "The growth of Takaful is owed mainly to the successful move of increasing the level of awareness on the significant benefits and advantages of utilising Takaful-based products and services. The emergence of Takaful as a strategic and preferred insurance solution is backed by years of reinforcing, creating a strong foundation for Islamic Muamalat." He pointed out that the UAE has earned recognition as a major contributor to the global Takaful segment, ranking third place globally. "Last year's Global Takaful Report has placed the UAE alongside the likes of Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, South East Asia and North Africa," he said. He explained that, as a result of this growth, both locally and internationally, we have seen a proliferation of new companies offering Islamic insurance products - companies who are considered to be full-fledged Takaful operators. Also, many conventional insurance companies have also followed suit and have entered the segment as well, offering their own share of Takaful solutions and services.

"The success encompassed by the Takaful segment, if analysed carefully, can widely be attributed to the strategic management and adoption of today's economic realities. The recent economic gridlock has given birth to new found consumer and corporate behaviour - demonstrating a need to be well-versed on a product or service before making a purchase or sale decision. This new consumer challenges the Takaful segment to roll out our products and services with more intensity, coupled with more information and value additions. Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached a new age for the Takaful market, where we have gone beyond investment income goals and thriving on intense competition - today, as it should have always been, we give light to the needs and demands of our customers, with better understanding and empathy.

TEACHING TAKAFUL

"We are confident that this upward movement will continue, both on a global level and a regional level. Just recently, AMAN was able to host a successful three day extensive training course on Takaful called Fundamentals of Takaful, which we offered for free to senior executives of Takaful companies based in the region.Theevent,whichweorganised in coordination with Takaful Re UAE and MRNB Malaysia with a specially designed course from the Malaysian Insurance Institute (MII), allowed us to provide deeper insight on Takaful, from its fundamentals to its philosophies. The intention of this educational course was to improve the technical knowledge of employees in the Takaful sector and prepare them to professionally meet the challenges of the future."

Al Meeza implored the crowd to be proactive in pushing the growth of Takaful. "With the Takaful segment expected to continue growing by leaps and bounds, the future looks very bright for all of us here today. But that doesn't mean we should just wait for this to happen, we should, by all means, make this happen!" With regards to this, Al Meeza proposed a three-fold plan of action to help the Takaful industry maintain constant growth.

CAPITAL PLANS

"The first point is to continue what we have started, and that includes the move to raise the level of awareness on the immense potential of using Takaful- based products and services," he said. "This means collective effort should be done in strengthening underwriting capabilities. We have already laid the strong foundation and groundwork of positioning Takaful as a strategic insurance solution, the rest of the work that needs to be done is to constantly reinforce these foundations.

"The second point is consonant to the move to raise awareness- we should tap into newer markets and industry verticals. We should leave no stone unturned in looking to attract new clients. At the same time, we should also act upon the presence of downward price pressures that is brought about by increased market competition. Takaful is based on the merits of honesty and transparency and showing the market that competition is healthy and complementing by offering these concepts to potential customers will surely play a key role in the underwritingprocess.

"The third and last point is to invest more into research and development. We should learn to listen, study and understand what our clients want and need. At best, the strength of the industry lies in the ability to identify and capitalise on what makes this market segment grow. Having a better grasp of their demands and requirements will lead us in developing solutions that can be very advantageous for them. Let us remember, at the end of the day, the smiles of a satisfied customer is the best sign that we have done our jobs properly. Let us roll out new products and services that are not only based on Shari'ah but also keeps our customers best interest in mind."

Al Meeza concluded with a heartfelt plea to Takaful operators to drive the industry forward. "Our goals have been set, our plans have been revealed and our path to success has already been mapped out - we now need to make that first step," he said. "Let us take action and bring the Takaful segment to its full potential. I urge you to join me on this journey, where Takaful will not only be seen as a fully reliable and effective insurance solution but rather a highly preferred insurance product, patronised by all!"

Takaful will not only be seen as a fully reliable and effective insurance solution but rather a highly preferred insurance product

2012 CPI Financial. All rights reserved.

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