NEWS – Elias Marine Consultants Ltd

Microinsurance in Egypt: A Growing Opportunity Under the New Unified Insurance Law.

The Unified Insurance Law No. 155 of 2024 was issued and came into force on July 12, 2024. Its purpose is to consolidate the laws related to insurance activities into a single law, as previous insurance laws were scattered across various separate pieces of legislation.

In this article, we will discuss microinsurance, an emerging sector that provides appropriate insurance coverage for small, medium, and micro enterprises.

Definition of Microinsurance:
Microinsurance is an insurance service targeting low-income individuals, covering properties and persons, to provide protection against risks they may face, in exchange for premiums appropriate to the nature of the risk.

Importance of Microinsurance:
Microinsurance plays a significant role in increasing insurance penetration by providing coverage for the risks faced by small, medium, and micro enterprises.

Significance of Microinsurance:
Microinsurance offers insurance companies the opportunity to reach low-income segments of society by entering into contracts with microfinance institutions, providing protection against various risks for individuals receiving microloans, including coverage for the risk of loan repayment default.

The microinsurance sector is continuously growing. According to statistics from the Insurance Indicator, the number of companies offering this type of insurance has increased to 15, with the number of insured individuals rising to 6.3 million in 2023. The total premiums amounted to 377 million Egyptian pounds. Additionally, the maximum limit for microinsurance coverage has been increased by 10%, reaching 242,000 pounds, up from 220,000 pounds.

This makes the sector attractive for investment, especially since Law No. 155 of 2024 has established a legislative framework for creating specialized companies in the field of microinsurance. Additionally, there is a strong shift toward utilizing electronic applications and artificial intelligence in Egypt’s insurance industry, which helps reduce costs, improve service speed, and enhance responsiveness, thereby increasing the returns generated from investment in this sector.

Article Written by Safwat Nasr.

Coronavirus Update 19.08.20 Cyprus – Lebanon – Egypt – Libya

Further to our previous Circulars (17th and 18th March, 9th April, and 12th May 2020), please find a further update on COVID-19 in each country EMCO Group has a presence.

Beirut Port Update 13.08.20

Following the destruction caused by the explosion in the port of Beirut on 4th August 2020, the container terminal (which remarkably remained largely unaffected by the blast) has resumed its operations with a number of containerships having already berthed at the said terminal, discharged their cargo and sailed therefrom. More vessels are expected to call at the container terminal in Beirut in the upcoming weeks. Efforts are being made by the port authorities to receive cargo ships and bulk carriers by cleaning the remaining three undamaged quays. However, given the substantial damage sustained by the port facilities, the cargo will need to be offloaded onto trucks using the vessels’ own gear or the shore cranes that have survived the blast and arrangements must be made for its storage since the storage area at the port has been fully demolished, whereas the Customs Authorities have opened offices in warehouse No. 14 (which was partially damaged by the explosion) and are hoping to be fully operational again within the forthcoming days. The port of Beirut remains under the control of the army.

Beirut Port Update 11.08.20

Beirut Port Explosion

As you may already have heard from the international media, a massive explosion took place yesterday afternoon in the Port of Beirut. While the cause of the blast was not immediately clear, the explosion is at present being apparently attributed to an incident related to welding being carried out at the entrance to a warehouse containing a cargo of ammonium nitrate stored in the said warehouse for a number of years. The blast had a disastrous effect on the Lebanese capital, with nearly all buildings in a 5 km radius being damaged or destroyed while almost totally flattening the port. As at the present time, at least 100 people are known to have died and over 4,000 people injured. Officials said they expect the death toll to rise further as emergency workers resume their work to rescue people and help the wounded.

Want to ensure that Charterers pay their hire?

It has not been unknown in recent years for some of the largest and well known Charterers to fail with little, if any, warning. When this happens, Owners who are owed money by their Charterers, for example for unpaid hire, may find themselves with limited options for the recovery of their losses. Where the Charterers are insolvent or have no assets, it is likely that recovery will be remote.The following steps should be taken into consideration to ensure that the Charterers pay their hire and Owners are protected as much as possible:

Liquefaction: shipping industry response*

The dangers associated with the carriage of solid bulk cargoes are undoubtedly one of the decade’s hot issues in the shipping industry. Some of the titles that circulated over this decade convey the alarming threats that have shaken the dry cargo-shipping sector, such as: “Cargo liquefaction still a problem”, “Club move to stop liquefaction losses”, “Crew safety should come first”, “Dealing with the unusual”, “Drive to cut liquefaction losses”, “Handle with care” and “Preventing liquefaction tops concerns”, to name a few.

PRIVATISATION OF LIMASSOL PORT

UPDATE: 15/02/17

PRIVATISATION OF LIMASSOL PORT
Further to our update of 10^th February 2017 on the privatisation of Limassol Port, the latest information on the situation is as follows:

On 14^th February 2017 trailer truck drivers gathered at the entrance of the port at around 10am, blocking vehicles from passing through. The drivers were protesting over the long delay in transferring containers and generally the slow service at the port since the privatisation on 29^thJanuary 2017.