The executive director of insurance at the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan, Nasreen Rashid, has commented that insurance penetration throughout Pakistan is “miserably” low. The insurance penetration of Pakistan is reportedly “0.7 percent of GDP, which is believed to be the lowest in the region”. According to the Life Insurance Council, a forum that connects the various stakeholders within the insurance sector, insurance penetration in India “reached 4.7 percent in 2008″.

Ms Rashid aims to increase the penetration of insurance in Pakistan, and to this end she commented, “now our focus is microinsurance for the people from lower income groups.” She added that “efforts would be made for the creation of an enabling environment for the promotion of insurance in the country.”

By: Christine Chang, Research Associate

Additional Resources:

Daily Times website: Insurance penetration low in Pakistan, April 16, 2010: http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=20104\16\story_16-4-2010_pg5_7

Life Insurance Council website: Better Insurance Reach Can Stimulate Economy, January 1, 2010: http://www.lifeinscouncil.org/media-centre/latest-news/369-better-insurance-reach-can-stimulate-economy