The Southeast Asian Disaster Risk Insurance Fund (SEADRIF) Insurance Company, a regional initiative supporting disaster risk financing solutions, and the ASEAN Coordinating Center for Humanitarian Assistance in Disaster Management (AHA Centre), the regional body for disaster response coordination, recently signed a Memorandum of Intent (MoI) in Bali, Indonesia.
The agreement establishes a collaborative framework to enhance disaster impact reporting and support the development of scalable risk financing approaches aimed at strengthening regional disaster preparedness.
According to SEADRIF Insurance Company, the MoU was signed during the first Knowledge Exchange Day co-hosted by the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Indonesia.
The event brought together more than 70 participants from ASEAN+3 member states and partner institutions, including representatives from governments, regional organizations, development agencies, and the insurance and reinsurance sectors in the areas of disaster risk financing (DRF) and climate resilience.
SEADRIF Insurance stated that discussions during the event highlighted the progress Indonesia has made on DRF initiatives. These include the National Catastrophe Fund (Pooling Fund Bencana), the Public Asset Insurance Program and ongoing work related to catastrophe risk modeling and parametric insurance.
SEADRIF Insurance Company cited the contributions of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic and the Philippines to provide perspective on working with the agency to implement national and regional DRF solutions. The program also includes an update on SEADRIF Insurance Company’s evolving initiatives.
SEADRIF insurance company said the partnership with the AHA Center represents a step towards linking disaster relief mechanisms with financial protection at a regional level. The collaboration is expected to support improved consistency and quality in disaster impact reporting.
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the two organizations will consider establishing a regional insurance mechanism aimed at providing pre-arranged financing for rapid humanitarian response and recovery following natural disasters affecting ASEAN member states.
As stated by SEADRIF Insurance Company, areas of cooperation are expected to include the exchange of DRF technology and its alignment with the operational response framework under the ASEAN Agreement on Disaster Management and Emergency Response (AADMER); the application of historical disaster data in insurance product development; and the organization of joint workshops and simulation exercises to link disaster response systems with financial triggering mechanisms.
The parties are expected to assess feasibility, refine technical approaches and explore collaborative solutions in accordance with their respective responsibilities.
Benedikt Signer, CEO of SEADRIF Insurance Company, commented: “Effective disaster risk financing starts with reliable data. This partnership with the AHA Center is a step towards further reimagining how ASEAN insurance solutions can be built directly on governments’ own data and integrated with core response systems.”
Li Yanming, Executive Director of the AHA Center, added: “We believe in the importance of disaster risk financing as a complement to the humanitarian response system. By strengthening regional cooperation and improving disaster reporting systems, we can support more predictable and timely financing to deliver assistance faster to disaster-affected communities across ASEAN.”
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