Key elements of country diagnostics

Consistent methodology

In the case of the Initiative, a global and consistent methodology has been developed. For countries, the use of the Access to Insurance Initiative methodology has several advantages. It ensures: 

• Overall quality processes are applied;
• Country Diagnostics Results can be fed into regional and global dissemination; and
• The process can benefit from international expertise developed through other diagnostics and implementation work.

For the Initiative, the consistent methodology also assists in ensuring that learning can be synthesized across countries and can provide a sound basis for providing input into the IAIS global standard setting and guidance processes.

IAIS standards and partnership

The Initiative operates in partnership with the IAIS being the international standard setter and forum of insurance supervisors. The Initiative supports countries and the IAIS in its efforts to develop global standards and guidance as well as to assist in the implementation of those standards. The country diagnostic program includes two critical elements that support this process:

• The methodology includes a review of the general regulatory and supervisory context using the IAIS Core Principles (ICP). In some countries, challenges of a supervisory or regulatory nature may exist that are not unique to the issue of access to insurance. The ICP review will thus ensure that the full context is taken into account. A useful confidential report on the detailed conclusions will be provided to the supervisors. The broader conclusions will also feed in to the overall report.
• Outcomes from the diagnostics, after discussion at country, regional and global exchanges, can be provided as input into the IAIS standard and guidance processes. In addition, where country, regional and global seminars are conducted, the IAIS will provide training material to advance supervisory capacity in areas that are identified as necessary and useful.

Contributing to and drawing on learning:

The country diagnostics conducted under the Initiative will contribute to and benefit from international learning. This will be facilitated through:

• Regional and global dissemination:
  The Initiative sees a critical opportunity to disseminate and cross fertilise experiences through regional and global events. Much of the Initiative’s work will be coordinated at a regional level;
• Synthesis:
  For the Initiative, the synthesizing of the results of multiple country cases is not only an opportunity but a key part of the process as this global synthesis will feed into IAIS processes of standard setting, guidance, and training development;
• Developing an expert cadre:
  Throughout all its activities, including country diagnostics, dissemination, synthesis and implementation, the Initiative sees one of its key goals as developing a core competency of topic experts to be available to assist future initiators of diagnostics and with implementation.

As such, each diagnostic also contributes to the goals of regional and global dissemination and standard and guidance setting.  

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