Straughn all for collective regional insurance

Minister in the Ministry of Finance Ryan Straughn says the Caribbean needs a coordinated regional approach to protect the livelihoods of citizens, including boosting financial literacy and revamping insurance culture.

Speaking at the 36th Caribbean Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (CARAIFA) Congress on Monday at the Wyndham Resort, Straughn said it made sense for the Caribbean to pool resources in the face of increasing threats from climate events and global economic shocks,

“Barbados is small, the region is small, but the idea of pooling risks, pooling opportunities…. We must do so quickly in order to build greater resilience. Whether that is financial resilience, whether that is economic resilience, whether that is climate resilience, whatever it is, we need to do so quickly,” he said.

Straughn emphasised that while Caribbean economies may be small, their collective financial potential is vast if populations were properly educated and mobilised.

“In the context of a rapidly evolving external environment, it becomes even more critical that the …money that our citizens across the region work so hard to earn, that money must now be deployed effectively to be able to earn a rate of return that is not dissimilar to that of what we see perhaps in North America and Europe. The only way we’re going to do that is if we do that collectively,” Straughn said.

Citing nearly US$50 billion in regional savings that remain underutilised, Straughn called for a cultural shift in how Caribbean people approach money management and risk protection.

The minister also noted the alarming trend of international insurers withdrawing from high-risk zones like California and Florida, warning that the Caribbean is not immune to similar market

withdrawals. To mitigate this, he said, regional governments are partnering with global insurers to secure more stable coverage for homes and businesses. However, Straughn stressed the public must also do its part.

He therefore proposed the development of a universal, entry-level insurance framework that ensures every working-age Caribbean citizen can contribute a small monthly amount to secure basic life coverage.

“We need to develop a system that allows every Caribbean citizen of perhaps working age, to know that if something happened to him that there is coverage in place, some basic level of coverage in place, that will not cause their families to be financially ruined. That coverage is contingent on them putting aside a small set of money every month to be able to do that. Because we all prioritise the things that we want, and nobody likes to think that they will die in the 30s or 40s or even 50s. Everybody believes they’re gonna live to 100, but as we know that is not the reality,” he said.

The minister added, “Now I’m not talking about necessarily you having a million dollars, or $50 million, but what is the appropriate coverage that allows all of us across the region in Barbados, Jamaica, Belize, all the way down across the region, to put aside $20 every month, $25 every month? That is pooled across the year, and allows us to pay [the family of] people who die of working age a payout across the region. Such that people are no longer exposed in the way that they ordinarily would be now.” (SB)