The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $400m policy-based loan to support reforms aimed at raising the efficiency of the Philippines' insurance industry, creating an enabling environment for broader participation in the sector, and helping stimulate stronger economic growth.
The Insurance Reform Program, Subprogram 1 supports broader financial sector development reforms in regulation and supervision, including greater intermediation of long-term credit for government infrastructure projects. It is designed to foster a more efficient, consumer-oriented, and technologically advanced insurance market that strengthens climate risk management and disaster resilience.
ADB country director for the Philippines, Andrew Jeffries said that the program is a strategic investment in the Philippines’ sustainable and inclusive economic future. “By modernising the regulatory framework, we are not only strengthening the insurance industry itself—we are building a critical line of protection for the nation, mobilising long-term capital for development, and ensuring that the benefits of economic growth reach every Filipino entrepreneur and household,” he said.
The new program will be implemented in three sequenced subprograms, in close partnership with the Insurance Commission. It supports comprehensive reforms—including cutting-edge digitalisation and climate finance—to enhance resilience, financial inclusion, and consumer trust.
This is ADB’s first dedicated insurance reform program, building on the bank’s ongoing support to the Philippine insurance industry and capital markets development since the late 1990s. Past initiatives include the Inclusive Finance Development Program and the Support to Capital Market-Generated Infrastructure Financing Program.
It also complements ADB’s recent support for related reforms, such as parametric and indemnity insurance under the Second Disaster Resilience Improvement Program, agriculture insurance under the Climate Change Action Program, and health insurance under the Build Universal Health Care Program.