Insurance and Private Pensions Committee (IPPC) Prof. Yoshihiro Kawai
1. What is the mission and mandate of your Committee? The mission of the Insurance and Private Pensions Committees (IPPC) is to promote fair, efficient, open and sound market-oriented insurance and private pensions systems, based on high levels of transparency, confidence, and integrity, and respecting recognised social objectives of these systems. The Committee is supported by the Working Party on Private Pensions, the International Network on Financial Education, the Task Force on Financial Consumer Protection, and the Task Force on Institutional Investors and Long-term Financing. The Committee seeks to enhance the long-term efficiency, resilience, stability and inclusiveness of insurance markets and private pensions systems; support the contribution of insurers and private pensions to welldiversified financing of long-term investment and inclusive growth; promote risk awareness, financial education and adequate consumer protection; strengthen the capacity of private pension systems to ensure adequate retirement income within overall pensions systems and address the challenges of ageing; and strengthen the capacity of individuals, businesses, and governments to address risks. 2. You have been designated Committee Chair. What is your background and what has convinced you to take up this post? How do you consider your background and experience contribute to such a role and function? My professional background is in the financial sector and in particular the insurance sector. In the past, I worked for a Japanese insurance company and later joined the OECD as Secretariat staff, taking care of the Insurance Committee. After the OECD, I supported the Government of Poland in the establishment of comprehensive insurance regulation. I later joined the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) to support its creation and expansion. I led the IAIS for 15 years as Secretary General. Through my experiences, I have gained a strong track record in insurance regulation and supervision, as well as in international cooperation among insurance and financial authorities. I took up the post as I understand the importance of OECD work on insurance and am confident that I am able to promote its mission and activities, given my background and the range of my activities. 3. What is your main priority as Chair? As Chair of the IPPC, a key priority for me is to ensure that the Committee can develop policy analysis and guidance with a view to ensuring the availability and affordability of insurance, particularly in the context of growing large-scale risks, such as climate and cyber, but also in light of environmental, market, technological, and demographic trends, which may create new industry dynamics and risks and introduce challenges for insurance markets and policyholders. Insurance markets make a critical contribution to the growth and sustainability of economies, by pooling and diversifying risks that people and businesses would find difficult to manage on their own. I am keen in exploring how insurability challenges, often stemming from risks that lead to highly-correlated losses – making
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