The cost of reinsurance has spiralled across the region by some 400 per cent since the advent of the Arab Spring and that is having a major impact on the insurance industry.

That will be one of the key issues to be discussed at a major insurance conference to be held in Bahrain in October, which will be the first of its kind in the region, reported the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication..

Hosted by the Bahrain Insurance Association (BIA) and the General Arab Insurance Federation (GAIF) with the support of the Central Bank of Bahrain, the Professional Occupational Insurance Forum will run from October 21 to 23 at the Ritz-Carlton Bahrain, Hotel and Spa.

It is being organised by FinMark Communications and is expected to attract around 300 to 400 leading GCC and GAIF members and Mena and South Africa-based insurers, industry players and corporates.

"Occupational insurance - a method of protection against legal expenses and other costs associated with medical malpractice and general corporate malfeasance - is becoming increasingly important with more and more organisations across the Mena markets seeking to offset the potential liabilities resulting from negligent activities of employees, directors and officers," said BIA chairman Younis Al Sayed.

"As such, the forum will focus on building awareness on the value of occupational insurance and its products," remarked Al Sayed.

"Furthermore, it will also examine similar protection for losses resulting from political violence, an issue that has becoming increasingly relevant for companies operating in a number of Arab countries in transition," he added.

He said the forum would examine issues like how to develop the market-place for occupational insurance and how to manage the need for this in the region.

"Political violence across the Arab world has been a hot topic in recent years, and it is one the industry needs to address - by convincing the reinsurance market that by and large the problems are not as severe as they are portrayed in the Press," he said yesterday at a meeting with Bahrain professional bodies at the Capital Club in Bahrain Financial Harbour to promote the event.

"We will be lining up panels of high quality experts from both Europe and the region to tackles these and other issues that the industry faces at a time of growth," he added.

The forum is expected to attract leading players in the insurance industry as well as financial and health professionals, regulatory authorities and other sectors of industry, according to organiser FinMark Communications' managing director Zahraa Taher.

"This is the first event of its kind in the region and it comes at a time when the industry is growing and facing challenges," she said.

"But it is not only a forum for the industry itself but for all organisations and industries that increasingly need to look at their insurance needs," he added.-TradeArabia News Service