India is developing rapidly and it is expected that the Indian
middle class population will reach 500 million within the next
twenty years. The insurance market is undergoing regulatory change,
with foreign investors now owning 26% of Indian companies.
Social trends in financial services are driving rapid
development and opinion formers are seeking to increase
professionalism within the sector, leaving behind some of the
"pushing product" features that have characterised many markets in
the early years of their evolution.
The Life Insurance Corporation (LIC), which controls 70% of the
market, has around two million agents, and is committed to raising
their levels of capability, through upgrading their qualifications
to a localised CII Award in Financial Planning.
The CII already deals with BPOs and many locally qualified
individuals in the market and has good relationships with the IRDA
(the regulator), the IIRM (the training arm of the regulator) and
the III, the local awarding body with both the III and IIRM being
affiliated institutes of the CII.
Working with IRDA
In India, the life market has become a mainstream sector of the
economy with a growing middle class population - with consumer
protection and best practice moving to the centre stage consumers
are requiring reassurance that their financial needs are being
handled by competent and trustworthy professionals - therefore it
is important that financial planning is based on robust fact find
and appropriate advice.
The India Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority
understands this need and has been working to raise standards of
professionalism amongst the life agent workforce in India.
The CII has worked in partnership with the IRDA to provide
expertise in this field to enhance the 'licence to practise'
qualification in India to impart the appropriate knowledge and
skills to meet the needs of a demanding modern economy
through study materials and an exam. The size of the of life
agent population in India is over 2.5 million and this
qualification is now compulsory for any agents entering the life
market in India.
New eMBA-Insurance programme
The MET League of Colleges and the CII have joined forces to
develop a new learning programme that will shape global insurance
professionals in India. With technical insurance content developed
by the CII and management and business modules designed by MET, the
eMBA-Insurance delivers unrivalled specialised education in support
of an industry poised for growth. Find out more
about eMBA-Insurance.