Several Opinions of the State Council on the Reform and Development of Insurance Industry
Several Opinions of the State Council on the Reform and Development of Insurance Industry
Several Opinions of the State Council on the Reform and Development of Insurance Industry
Guo Fa [2006] No. 23
June 15, 2006
The people's governments of all provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government, all ministries and commissions of the State Council and the institutions directly subordinate to the State Council,
Since the reform and opening up, especially the 16th Party Congress, remarkable achievements have been made in the reform and development of the insurance industry in China. The insurance operations have grown rapidly, the service scope has been continuously broadened, the market system has been increasingly perfected, the laws and regulations have been gradually improved, the supervisory level have been continuously enhanced, and the risks have been effectively prevented and avoided, which makes the overall strength obviously reinforce This is playing an important role in promoting the reform, guaranteeing the economy, stabilizing the society, benefiting the people and etc. However, since the insurance industry has a late start, a weak base and a narrow coverage, its functions are not fully exerted, and it does not adapt to the requirements for building a well-off society in an all-round way and constructing a harmonious socialistic society, to establish a sound socialistic market economy, or to the new situations of economic globalization, financial integration and opening up to the external in an all-round way. Now facing the future, the development of insurance industry stands on a new historical starting point with huge development potentiality and space. With the purpose of fully implementing the scientific development view, clarifying the guiding ideology, objectives, tasks, policies and measures for the reform and development of the insurance industry for a period in future, accelerating the reform and development of the insurance industry, and promoting the construction of a socialistic harmonious socialistic society, we hereby propose the following opinions:
I. Fully recognizing the important significance of accelerating the reform and development of the insurance industry
Insurance has the function of economic compensation, financing and social management. It is a basic means of risk management under market economy conditions, it is also an important part of the financial system and the social security system, and it plays an important role in building a harmonious socialistic society. Accelerating the reform and development of the insurance industry can help respond to the risks of disasters and accidents, and guarantee the safety of the people's lives and properties as well as the stable operation of economy. Every year, the people of China suffer a huge life and property loss due to natural disasters and various traffic products and other accidents. Because of the restrictions in aspects of system, mechanism and etc., only a low proportion of enterprises and families buy insurances, and only a small part of losses from disasters and accidents can be compensated through insurance, which is not beneficial to timely resuming the work and living order and meanwhile increases financial and affair burdens of the government. Accelerating the reform and development of the insurance industry and building a market-based mechanism of compensating losses from disasters and accidents will play an irreplaceable important role improving the disaster prevention and salvation system, enhancing the capabilities of the whole society to prevent risks and promoting the rapid and healthy development of the economy.
Accelerating the reform and development of the insurance industry helps to improve the social security system and meet the masses' multi-level demands for social security. At present, China is within a key period of improving socialistic market economy, the ageing progress of the population speeds up, the people's living standards improve and the demands for social security become increasingly intense. Accelerating the reform and development of the insurance industry and encouraging and inducing the masses to buy insurances of commercial endowment or health, etc. will be of important realistic significance to improving the social security system, enhancing the level of social security of the whole society, enlarging the demands of resident consumptions and realizing social stability and harmony.
Accelerating the reform and development of the insurance industry will help optimize the allocation of financial resources and improve socialistic market economy. The financial system of China develops unevenly with excessive indirect financing, which has infected the efficiency of allocating financial resources and obstructed the diffusion and elimination of financial risks. The beginning 20 years of the present century are an important period of great strategic opportunity for China to speed up its development, so the core function of finance in modern economy is even more prominent. Accelerating the reform and development of the insurance industry, exerting the important functions of insurance in allocating financial resources and promoting the coordinative development of currency market, capital market and insurance market will be of important significance to improve the financial system and the socialistic market economy.
Accelerating the reform and development of the insurance industry is beneficial to social management, innovations in public service and the improvement of the efficiency of government administration. With the deepening of the reform of administration system, the governments must integrate various social resources, make full use of market mechanisms and means, and continuously improve the social management and public services.
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