MAKATI– Natural Catastrophes (NatCat) are heavily prevalent in countries situated near the equator, more specifically in the Pacific Ring of Fire, from typhoons and flash floods to drought and dry spells. CLIMBS’ CEO and President, Mr. Noel D. Raboy, along with industry experts and innovators was invited to share his expertise as a panelist at the 20th Aisa Natural CAT and Climate Change Summit which was held at Fairmont, Makati last July 10-11, 2024. 

With the theme, “Forging Resilience: Building a Future-Proof Insurance Industry in the face of Nat CAT Threats,” the two-day program centered around navigating the challenges posed by natural disasters leading to the urgent need for insurers, stakeholders, and industry leaders to innovate and adapt to protect market sustainability, identify innovative policy solutions, foster collaboration and knowledge sharing. 

Mr. Raboy, one of the leading industry innovators paving the way for climate insurance to integrate into the Philippine market, was invited to be a speaker at the summit, tackling the topic of “Harnessing Innovation, Helping Farmers, and Building Resilience in Communities: The CLIMBS Weather Protect Insurance Experience in the Philippines.” 

Under his leadership as President and CEO of CLIMBS, the organization has on boarded a total of 185 cooperatives across the country, insuring 114,788 farmer-members and impacting 573,940 household members through its Weather Protect Insurance, which combines the byproduct of smart agriculture practices with innovative insurance solutions. 

The panel discussion revolved around questions on parametric insurance, obtaining insights from Fiji’s first ever parametric microinsurance products, and diving deeper into understanding the difference between traditional insurance and parametric insurance. Alongside him was the Vice President for Administration and Corporate Planning, as well as the CEO of the Co-operative College of the Philippines, Ms. Donna C. Dizon, and Coop Life and General Insurance Services Agency’s CEO, Mr. Henry M. Lopez, to collectively share insights and build a network dedicated to managing the impact of climate-related disasters and charting a resilient society as a whole.

Addressing this disparity in significant financial losses and testing the insurer’s flexibility sets the stage for catalyzing action for mitigating and anticipating natural catastrophes, fortifying global leaders, climate change experts, and agencies to echo the call for the industry in order to face the challenges of tomorrow.