DHAKA, March 1, 2021 (BSS) – Laying emphasis on massive publicity to
motivate people to expand insurance coverage in the country, Prime Minister
Sheikh Hasina today urged the insurance companies to provide services giving
the customers’ interest utmost priority.
“Insurance is a service-oriented profession. Both the government and non-
government insurance companies have to work with regulatory authority in
combine to make it popular and bring the services at people’s doorstep,
alongside giving the customer’s interest highest priority,” she said.
The premier was addressing the opening ceremony of National Insurance Day-
2021 at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC), joining virtually
from her official residence Ganabhaban.
She asked the insurance companies to make the people aware of insurance
that they will get facilities in their bad times through opening insurance
policies.
“You [companies] have to conduct more mass campaigns so they (people)
become inspired about insurance,” she added.
National Insurance Day-2021 is being observed today in the country in a
befitting manner with the theme of “Mujib Borsher Ongikar, Bima Hok Sobar”.
The great architect of independence, Father of the Nation Bangabandhu
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman joined Alpha Insurance Company on March 1, 1960 taking
insurance as a profession.
To commemorate this day, the government observes National Insurance Day on
March 1 every year.
On this day, four eminent personalities were given special honors for their
significant contribution to the insurance sector.
On behalf of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa
Kamal handed over the crest of honors to the recipients, and distributed
Bangabandhu Education Insurance to four students.
A total of 50,000 students are being given this Bangabandhu Education
Insurance.
Senior Secretary of Financial Institutions Division Md. Ashadul Islam
delivered welcome address at the function with Mustafa Kamal in the chair.
Bangladesh Insurance Association President Sheikh Kabir Hossain also spoke
on the occasion.
At the function, a documentary on the insurance sector was screened.
The prime minister said insurance would be more important with the
expansion of the country’s economy and that’s why the insurance companies should pay more concentration on awareness building among the people.
Sheikh Hasina also stressed the necessity of timely payment clearance from the insurance companies, saying that “it has to be ensured that people get insurance money as per their insurance or actual damage.”
In the country some people, she said, have the tendency to collect more
money from insurance companies through artificial accidents.
Although this type of tendency has reduced or stopped at this moment, but
the companies should pay heed to it and send skilled and efficient people for
inquiry, she added.
The prime minister referred to the time befitting initiatives of
government on insurance through the implementation of National Insurance
Policy-2014.
She said they have introduced expatriate worker insurance for migrant
workers and crop insurance in limited scale for hoar people so they can
overcome the damages caused by flood and other natural disasters.
“Health insurance needs to be launched on a massive scale in the country.
Our people are not well aware but I hope they will become aware after the
Covid-19 pandemic,” she continued.
The premier extended her gratitude to Insurance Development and Regulatory
Authority (IDRA) as it introduced “Bangabandhu Education Insurance”,
“Bangabandhu Security Insurance” and “Bangabandhu Sportsmen’s Comprehensive
Insurance” on the occasion of Mujib Borsha.
Mentioning the Bangabandhu Education Insurance as a great initiative, she
said it would ensure the uninterrupted academic life of students in the time
of any physical disability or unexpected death of their parents.
Briefly highlighting different measures taken by her government for the
development of the insurance sector, the prime minister said state-of-the-art
technology based unified messaging platform has been introduced to protect
the interest of insurance customers.
Besides, a Taka 632 crore project, financed by both government and World
Bank, is being implemented for the automation and capacity strengthening of
Bangladesh Insurance Academy, Sadharan Bima Corporation, Jibon Bima
Corporation and IDRA, she added.
Sheikh Hasina went on saying the government is also sending five students
to the United Kingdom for higher education in Actuarial science under a
scholarship programme to enhance professional excellence.
She said Bangabandhu after independence set up four insurance corporations
— Surma, Rupsa, Teesta and karnaphuli– nationalizing 49 local and foreign
insurance companies through issuing Bangladesh Insurance (Nationalization)
Order-1972, and also established National Insurance Corporation to regulate
these four organizations.
Later, he established Jibon Bima Corporation for life insurance and
Sadharan Bima Corporation for non-life insurance by scraping the five
corporations enacting Insurance Corporation Act-1973 for the development of
the country’s insurance sector, she added.
The premier said Jibon Bima Corporation and Sadharan Bima Corporation have
been still providing insurance services to the people while Bangladesh
Insurance Academy was also established by the Father of the Nation.
Turning to the Coronavirus situation, she renewed her call to the country’s
people to follow the health protection protocols properly and wear facemask
even after taking Covid-19 vaccine.