The Federation of European Risk Management Associations (FERMA) has called upon the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union to amplify risk management in efforts to strengthen competitiveness which would benefit the re/insurance sector.
It also stated its support and encouragement for the Presidency’s efforts to transition to a greener economy, enhance overall crisis preparedness, and bolster cyber resilience, highlighting “the critical function” of cyber insurance.
In its paper “Protect, strengthen, prepare and what it means for risk managers”, FERMA focused on the four areas of its work that correspond to the Belgian Presidency’s agenda.
The Federation highlighted the central role of risk management in each area. Regarding strengthening competitiveness, FERMA stated its support of the Belgian Presidency making this one of its six high-level priorities, as managing risks is vital to remain competitive.
It also stated its support and commitment to contribute to EU efforts in pursuing a green and just transition. The organisation also highlighted that managing the risks of this transition will be paramount.
FERMA also looks for opportunities to exchange with the Belgian Presidency on how to bring the expertise of its network to the EU-level, this to enhance the Presidency’s crisis preparedness and responses.
Finally, FERMA supports the Belgian Presidency’s ideas to bolster cyber resilience by reviewing gaps in EU Cyber Policy and pursuing a joint-approach to active cyber protection.
Innovation will be a core aspect of Europe’s ability to strengthen its competitiveness, the organisation explained. In its paper, FERMA highlighted the need for “good, affordable risk-transfer solutions” that would enable enterprises to take the risks necessary to deliver on their innovation ambitions.
The Federation also called for further efforts to address the regulatory burden on organisations, stating “simplifying the regulatory stack to facilitate the competitive operation of enterprises in Europe is crucial”.
At the same time, it also urged the Belgian Presidency to increase data access by improving upon the proposal for a Framework for Financial Data Access (FIDA), a move it believes has the potential to boost the competitiveness of the re/insurance sector.
Addressing the “legislative push towards a greener, more socially responsible economy”, FERMA looked to the Belgian Presidency to “rely on a risk-based approach to sustainability requirements”.
Moreover, FERMA emphasised the importance of a multi-stakeholder approach to managing cyber risk and endorsed the Belgian Presidency’s commitment to achieving “active cyber protection” through a collaborative and proactive strategy.
It highlighted the need to focus on cyber security and resilience in a digital society and noted the critical function of cyber insurance. Additionally, FERMA called upon the Belgian Presidency to integrate cyber risk management and cyber insurance into its review and gap analysis of EU Cyber Policy.
Commenting on the paper, Charlotte Hedemark, President, FERMA, said: “FERMA believes risk managers have a vital role to play in enabling enterprises to respond effectively to the multifaceted crises they currently face. We urge the Belgian Presidency to recognise this and encourage them to work closely with the risk management community to address the priority issues of competitiveness, the green transition, crisis response and cyber resilience, and to ensure the levels of protection, strength and preparedness that are required.”
