Poor service hampers insurance businesses
Poor service hampers insurance businesses
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's insurance industry needs to improve
on the services their companies offer, the Director of Insurance
at the Ministry of Finance, Sophar L. Toruan, said here
yesterday.
Speaking at a press conference here yesterday, Toruan noted
that the government will take a group of 22 top executives from
local insurance companies to Australia from Nov. 12 to Nov. 19 to
observe and study local practices down under.
"We have to admit that Australia's insurance services are
several steps ahead of Indonesia's," Toruan said.
During their week-long visit, the delegates will visit 11
insurance companies in Sydney and Melbourne and will meet with
Australian State Treasurer Ralph Willis and executives of the
Australian Insurance Commissioners and the Life Insurance
Federation of Australia.
In addition to insurance services, the delegation, to be led
by Director General for Financial Institutions Bambang Subijanto,
will also brush up on the usage of computer technologies relevant
to the insurance business, investment management and
administration of pension funds.
"We are still infant in pension funds, and thus, our services
are still below par. We hope we will be able to adopt some
techniques (from Australia) to improve them," Toruan said.
He also noted that a number of Australian insurance companies
will invest their money in Indonesia by establishing joint-
venture firms with local partners.
They are, among others, the National Mutual Life Association
of Australia Ltd. which will cooperate with National Tempo Life,
MLC Life Ltd. with Simas Life, the Colonial Mutual Life Insurance
Society Ltd. with an insurance firm affiliated to the Astra
International.
He said insurance companies from Australia are interested in
entering Indonesia as only eight percent of the country's 180
million people are insured.
To improve local insurance businesses, Toruan said, insurance
companies are advised to diversify the investments of their
funds.
"Most of them invest their money in time deposits. They should
diversify their investments, into areas like land, real estate
and capital markets," Toruan suggested. (rid)