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Munich Re-Germanwatch Briefing 2004Insuring the Uninsurable:
Climate Change and Insurance
Reinhard Mechler
IIASA
May 10, 2004
Financing natural disaster risk in developing countries:the case of Honduras
Overview
1. General remarks: risk financing for developing countries
2. Honduras: effects after Hurricane Mitch
3. Implications for climate change work
4. Conclusions
“Insurer of last resort”
Market for risk transfer
MFIsLending Portfolio
Public sectorInfrastructure
Private SectorHousing, machinery etc.
“Reinsurer of last resort”
Reserve fund
Loss financing in developing countries
Private sector: Low uptake of commercial insurance in lower-income countries
Often not available Need insurance culture and institutions ExpensiveGovernment has to provide
financing post-disaster
>9,361 3,031-9,360 761-3,030 <760
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
GDP [USD]
Ratio of insured losses to total losses according to country income groups for period 1985-1999
29%
9%
2%1%
Source: Munich Re 2000
Role of infrastructure
High poverty- and growth relevance (clean water, roads, schools etc.)
Bottlenecks in developing countries Adverse selection and moral hazard can be dealt with
Issues in disaster management and loss financing
• Disaster management (used to be) retroactive (ex-post)– Losses financed to large extent by international donors and MFIs– Financing gaps and time lags for developing countries– Little incentives for investments into ex –ante risk management
International aid and development funding agencies, besides sharing consternation at delays, disruptions, and increased costs, have the strong view that wisely planned hazard and vulnerability reduction efforts and funding before a catastrophe pay excellent dividends in reducing economic impacts. Mitigation expenditures are a very small fraction of the funds spent on reconstruction in the aftermath of catastrophes (Pollner 2000: 44)
• Objectives: – More emphasis on loss reduction (mitigation)– Reduction of vulnerability– Risk financing solutions
• Disaster management (ex-ante+ex-post) as crucial element of sustainable development
Risk financing (Risk transfer)
• Benefits – Quick compensation:
– Smaller financing gap
– Covariant risk transferred inter-regionally or internationally
– Incentives for loss reduction
• Costs– Premia/costs considerable, usually larger than expected annual loss,
creating opportunity costs
– Costs annually
– Costs today, benefits in future
Current activities in Honduras
• Workshop held in March for finance ministery, next meeting in May, strategy paper
• Steps underway
1. Risk assessment, financial vulnerability
2. Analysis of current insurance arrangements in Honduras
3. Analysis of protection of uncovered liabilities: E(X)=10 million US$/year
4. Pool for support of poor and affected?Contingent credit arrangements?
Honduras after Hurricane Mitch 1998
Source: World Bank 2002, 2003
GDP in Honduras
2,800
3,300
3,800
4,300
4,800
5,300
5,800
19
90
19
91
19
92
19
93
19
94
19
96
19
97
19
98
19
99
20
00
20
01
20
02
Mill
ion
co
nsta
nt
19
97
US
D
GDP
GDP projected, BAU
Time lag: Transportation bottlenecks after Mitch
[travel time to markets]
Before After
Source: World Bank 1999
Financing drives recovery
Sources: World Bank 2002
Low domestic savings, reliance on aid and borrowingLow domestic savings, reliance on aid and borrowing
Aid and borrowing(% GNP)
-
3
6
9
12
15
18
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000
Aid
Net financial flows, IDA
Storm and flood hazard
Honduras Storm and Flood Exposure
0.9
0.91
0.92
0.93
0.94
0.95
0.96
0.97
0.98
0.99
1
0 10 20 30 40
% Capital Stock Destroyed
Obligations of government
1. Reconstruction of public assets: roads, bridges, schools, hospitals: Exposed and uninsured public assets: 1.6 billion USD (=12.3% of total capital stock) according to bottom-up WB analysis 2001
2. Help private households and businesses with rebuilding
3. Provide relief to the poor
Total assets/capital stock for 2004: 13.9 billion USD
Risk assessment
Hurricane Mitch 1998: 2,000 million USD in direct losses of total assets (private and public), 18% of capital stock > 100 year event
Storm/flood/landslide
Probability Return period (years) Loss (%) Infrastr. loss (Mill. USD) Loss (%) Infrastr. loss (Mill. USD)10% 10 2.4% 39 0.8% 212% 50 4.6% 76 5% 1301% 100 11.6% 189 12% 312
0.5% 200 17% 278 - -0.2% 500 28.5% 465 31% 806
Expected loss 0.5% 8.6 0.4% 11.2
World BankAssets: 1600 Mill USD
IIASA/Swiss ReAssets: 2600 Mill USD
EarthquakeWorld Bank
Probability Return period (years) Loss (%) Infrastr. loss (Mill. USD) Loss (%) Infrastr. loss (Mill. USD)10% 10 - - 0.1% 32% 50 - - 0.8% 21
1.0% 100 0.7% 11 1.4% 360.5% 200 1.6% 26 - -
0.33% 300 3.2% 53 - -0.25% 400 3.8% 62 - -0.2% 500 - - 4.0% 104
0.10% 1000 5.6% 92 - -Expected loss 0.04% 0.66 0.06% 1.6
Combined expected loss 0.58% 9.3 0.49% 12.7all types of hazards
World Bank IIASA/Swiss ReAssets: 1600 Mill USD Assets: 2600 Mill USD
Expected annual loss
• Annualized costs to be expected over longer-term horizon, however: disasters are NOT annual, average events
• Basis for calculation of risk financing arrangements:
premium = expected losses + risk premium
(loading factor for rare events
+ transaction costs
+ profit margin (eg of insurers))
El Salvador/Insurance
1
1.2
1.4
1.6
1.8
2
2.2
2.4
2.6
2.8
3
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Year
Ret
urn
El Salvador/No Insurance
1
1.2
1.4
1.6
1.8
2
2.2
2.4
2.6
2.8
3
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Year
Ret
urn
Trade-off stability growth-could be solved by MFI intervention-
Implications for climate change community• Climate change impacts no topic in Honduras, adaptation to current risk (=no regret option)
• Country risk and financial vulnerability assessment done – however uncertainties have to be understood, can be baseline for CC scenarios
• MFI willing to support: stimulation of pro-active behavior and mitigation (=adaptation/loss reduction)
• Not only (re-)insurance, but mix of instruments• Pools, reserve funds• Contingent credit• Cat bonds
• Potential Climate fund could build on these efforts!