[SINGAPORE] As the Global Asia Insurance Partnership’s (GAIP) new chief executive officer, Cheng Min Hung is on a mission to tackle one of the region’s most pressing challenges: a growing insurance protection gap.
This gap means much of Asia lacks adequate insurance coverage for major risks, including healthcare expenses, financial protection for families in the event of death and losses from natural disasters.
Cheng cited a recent report from reinsurer Swiss Re, which estimated that the region’s health protection gap stood at US$905 billion in 2023 across advanced and emerging Asia-Pacific markets.
Measured in premium-equivalent terms to represent the uninsured portion of total protection needs, this has widened steadily from US$517 billion in 2013, growing at an average of 5.8 per cent per year over the past decade.
Cheng said GAIP is addressing the issue through a tripartite partnership between the global insurance industry, regulators and policymakers, and academia.
“I see us looking to build long-term risk resilience in Asia by narrowing its protection gaps, and we do that by bringing together the expertise of our tripartite partners,” she told The Business Times in an exclusive interview.
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Established in 2021, GAIP currently includes 16 industry partners and 11 regulatory partners such as AIA, Prudential and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Nanyang Technological University is GAIP’s main academic and talent development partner.
Cheng said GAIP’s analysis shows that lower protection gaps translate to higher risk resilience, which in turn strengthens economic resilience. “By addressing Asia’s protection gaps, we are able to support the economic development of the region,” she said.
She added that GAIP is the only tripartite partnership of its kind with a focus on insurance and risk issues in Asia. While organisations such as the International Association of Insurance Supervisors, Geneva Association and Insurance Development Forum operate globally, none have a dedicated regional focus.
“That is where we bring in value, because our academic research into key and emerging risk issues are focused on Asia,” Cheng said, citing GAIP’s recent inland flood risk study in Thailand’s Chao Phraya River Basin using a geographical hierarchical deep-learning model.
Cheng, who took on her current role in May, said that while the responsibilities of a CEO can feel daunting, she also sees them as “a good kind of challenge”.
“I am someone who believes that in my career, I want to leave a legacy,” she added. “And what better legacy can there be than what I can potentially achieve here at GAIP?”
Having been closely involved in shaping the platform’s direction from its early days, Cheng joined as a senior director in October 2022 and later served as deputy CEO.
With more than 20 years of experience in the life and health insurance sector, she is a qualified actuary and has held roles at AXA Asia Pacific, Aviva and Manulife Singapore.
Holistic approach
Cheng said GAIP is guided by four strategic themes: an integrated approach to protection gaps; addressing health and retirement gaps; climate change and insurance; and navigating the technological landscape.
Earlier this year, it finalised its strategy for 2025 to 2029, transitioning from a primarily research-oriented body into one that translates research into direct action and greater societal impact.
“We are advocating for this holistic, integrated approach, where we look at risks comprehensively,” Cheng said. The strategy also comprises looking at solutions across risk reduction, increasing insurance penetration, and fiscal risk financing.
Cheng stressed that while many people think of Asia-Pacific as a single region, it is highly diverse in terms of economic development, geography, culture, language and industries; it therefore cannot be approached as a whole when designing solutions.
This diversity is reflected in GAIP’s ongoing work, including a two-phased study on retirement.
The first phase is a qualitative study covering Japan, China, Singapore and Indonesia, examining both public and private-sector solutions across retirement savings, efficiency, elderly healthcare and long-term care.
The second phase will establish a framework to quantify the retirement protection gap, which Cheng noted is not regularly published.
“To get anyone to start paying attention, we need to show them the facts and figures first,” she added.
GAIP is also advancing its work on climate change and insurance through a two-pronged approach. The first focuses on helping partners and the industry better understand the impacts of climate change on their businesses.
The second explores how the insurance sector can leverage its expertise to support climate action, including research on extreme temperatures and air pollution. This study is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.
Role of Singapore
Given that GAIP is headquartered in Singapore, Cheng highlighted that the Republic has a significant role to play in closing its own protection gap, and in supporting efforts across Asia.
A key example is the annual GAIP Summit that brings together experts from the global insurance industry, regulators, policymakers, and academia.
The event, held annually in Singapore, facilitates the exchange of best practices and insights, fostering dialogue that can translate into tangible action.
This year’s summit will take place from Sep 15 to 16 and will focus on actionable strategies to close Asia’s protection gaps through multi-sectoral collaborative efforts.
Cheng said this requires participation beyond the insurance industry and regulators, involving stakeholders such as health and finance ministries around the region, disaster risk management agencies, as well as utilities companies and climate scientists.
“They share best practices and insights that create dialogues that will hopefully lead to actions as well,” she said.
