Targeted investment will help insurers manage risks, says report
International industry bodies have called on governments to take practical steps to mitigate the impacts of climate change on the developing world.
ClimateWise, the Geneva Association, the Munich Climate Insurance Initiative and leading insurance companies within the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative issued a joint statement at Lloyd’s earlier today.
The statement states that governments across the world are looking to the insurance industry as a source of solutions to the climate change related problems. But it says governments must create an enabling environment within which insurance can manage risks most effectively.
The four bodies urge governments to implement the Hyogo agreement on disaster risk reduction, which recommends each should appoint a national risk officer with a mandates to develop a holistic risk management strategy. Government action could also embrace limited investment to measure and reduce those risks, such as by climate proofing new infrastructure and developing and enforcing zoning and building codes.
