Wednesday, March 12, 2008 - Thursday, March 13, 2008
Regional Workshop on Corporate Governance of Insurance Companies
Tirana, Albania
On Wednesday, March 12 and Thursday, March 13, 2008 the Albanian Financial Supervisory Authority (AFSA) and the PFS Program held a Regional Workshop on Corporate Governance of Insurance Companies.
This Regional Workshop, held in Tirana, marked the PFS Program’s first activity in Albania and its 105th regional event since the PFS Program was launched in late 1999.
The AFSA invited the PFS Program to co-organize this Regional Workshop in order to promote the implementation of best practice and adoption of international standards of corporate governance in the Albanian insurance market. A primary goal of the Workshop was to educate Albanian insurance regulators and senior decision-makers of Albanian insurance companies about corporate governance of insurance companies in new member states of the European Union. The practical information presented, debated and discussed at the Regional Workshop provided reference points and benchmarks for comparison with developments in Albania. The PFS Program emphasizes case study and peer based learning in all its training programs.
At the outset of the Workshop, Keler Gjika, Deputy Chair, AFSA, presented an overview of the Albanian insurance market and the current framework for corporate governance of insurance companies in Albania. Thereafter, Gorazd Podbevsek, Socius, outlined the framework for corporate governance of insurance companies in Slovenia. Boris Persak, Zavarovalnica Maribor d.d. presented two case studies of insurance fraud and their governance implications. The PFS Program presented a case of a Swedish insurer whose corporate governance system collapsed, thereby allowing excessive and unauthorized executive compensation. At the end of the first day of the Workshop, Audrius Linartas, Insurance Supervisory Commission of Lithuania, described the framework for corporate governance of insurance companies in Lithuania.
On the second day of the Workshop, Anna Miernicka-Szulc described the framework for corporate governance of insurance companies in Poland. Pawel Dudzicz, Polish Financial Supervision Authority, shared two case studies regarding regulating and supervising the activities of Polish insurance companies. Jim Vint, FTI Technology Consulting, ended the Workshop with a presentation about data governance and a case study about the consequences of an insurance company’s poor data governance.
The participant profile was as follows: 45 Albanian participants, including 22 staff members of the AFSA; four representatives of donors and international financial sector firms active in Albania; a representative of the Insurance Agency of Bosnia and Herzegovina; and two representatives of the Central Banking Authority of Kosovo.
The PFS Program appreciates the contribution of speakers from Albania, Lithuania, Poland, Slovenia and the US to this Workshop, part of an ongoing PFS Program regional initiative in the area of insurance supervision. The current mandate of the PFS Program is to engage financial sector institutions in SEE target countries in programs that help promote the identification of best practice and the adoption of international standards. Within this mandate, one important element of each PFS Program activity is the exchange of experience of the new member states of the EU with EU accession countries in SEE.
To download the Workshop agenda, a brief biography of each speaker, the presentations and the list of participants, please click on the links below:
 | Agenda - Regional Workshop on CG of Insurance Companies - March 12-13, 2008.pdf - 34 KB |
| Opening Presentation - PFS Program - March 12, 2008.pdf - 396 KB |
| Presentation - AFSA - March 12, 2008.pdf - 252 KB |
| Brief Bio - Keler Gijka - March 2008.pdf - 10 KB |
| Presentation - Slovenia - Socius - March 12, 2008.pdf - 88 KB |
| Brief Bio - Gorazd Podbevsek - March 2008.pdf - 11 KB |
| Presentation - Slovenia - ZM dd - March 12, 2008.pdf - 54 KB |
| Brief Bio - Boris Persak - March 2008.pdf - 11 KB |
| Presentation - PFS Program - Case in Point - March 12, 2008.pdf - 419 KB |
| Brief Bio - Geoffrey Mazullo - March 2008.pdf - 16 KB |
| Presentation - Lithuania - Insurance Supervisory Commission - March 12, 2008.pdf - 172 KB |
| Brief Bio - Audrius Linartas - March 2008.pdf - 11 KB |
| Presentation - Corporate Governance of Polish IC - March 12, 2008.pdf - 280 KB |
| Background Paper - Corporate Governance of Polish Insurance Companies - March 2008.pdf - 60 KB |
| Brief Bio - Anna Miernicka-Szulc - March 2008.pdf - 11 KB |
| Presentation - PFSA - March 13, 2008.pdf - 361 KB |
| Brief Bio - Pawel Dudzicz - March 2008.pdf - 98 KB |
| Presentation - Data Governance - FTI - March 13, 2008.pdf - 195 KB |
| Brief Bio - Jim Vint - March 2008.pdf - 10 KB |
| List of Participants - CG of Insurance Companies - March 12-13, 2008.pdf - 63 KB |
Saturday, April 21, 2007 - Saturday, June 9, 2007
NAIC Spring 2007 International Internship Program
United States
An off-site financial analyst of the Albanian Financial Supervisory Authority participated in the spring 2007 international internship program organized by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) from April 21 through June 9, 2007.
Following a one-week introductory training program in Kansas City, MO the intern undertook a one-month internship with the Department of Insurance, State of Georgia. Thereafter, the intern participated in the NAIC National Meeting in San Francisco, CA. At the end of the internship program, the intern participated in close-out activities in Washington, DC organized by the NAIC’s internship coordinator.
The PFS Program emphasizes peer-assisted learning as an effective professional development mechanism. This internship program provided an excellent opportunity for the off-site financial analyst of the Albanian Financial Supervisory Authority to expand her knowledge base and skills. Each of the participating institutions contributed towards the cost of this program.
Thursday, May 11, 2006 - Saturday, May 13, 2006
Crans Montana High Level Experts Forum
Tirana, Albania
From Thursday, May 11, 2006 through Saturday, May 13, 2006 the Crans Montana Forum held an inaugural High Level Experts Forum in Tirana, Albania entitled, “Albania – In the Crossroad of East-West Europe: The Investment Framework.”
A wide range of institutions from Albania, South East Europe, the European Union and other countries participated in the Forum, exchanging information and views related to topics including: education, energy, financial sector development, foreign direct investment, infrastructure and rule of law. Regional cooperation, integration of South East European (SEE) markets and the integration of the Albanian economy into the European economy were underlying themes of all the sessions.
Geoffrey Mazullo, Director, PFS Program, co-chaired a session entitled, “Modernization of the Legal Foreign Investment Framework: A Basic Requirement.”
To learn more about the Forum, please visit the Forum website: Crans Montana High Level Experts Forum - Tirana, Albania – May 11-13, 2006.
Saturday, June 1, 2002
Country Studies: The Economic Impact of Registered Pledge Systems in Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Lithuania and Poland
In 2001/2002, the PFS Program co-financed five country studies: Each
study analyzed the economic impact of the registered pledge system in the
respective country. The Albanian study
was co-financed by the Albanian Economic
Research Center; the Bulgarian study was co-financed by the Center for Economic Development; the Hungarian
study was co-financed by the International
Center for Economic Growth European Center; the Lithuanian study was
co-financed by the Lithuanian Free Market
Institute; and the Polish study was co-financed by The Gdansk Institute for Market Economics
To download the studies, please click on the appropriate link below:
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