Building SME Resilience in Asia

Wednesday, March 6th 2024 ︳10.30 AM - 12.00 PM (GMT+8) ︳Equatorial Plaza, Jalan Sultan Ismail, Kuala Lumpur ︳Watch the livestream

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of the ASEAN economy, making up 97% of businesses in the region. However, despite their contribution to socio-economic growth and development, small businesses remain highly vulnerable to risks including to climate change, business interruption, health, limited access to international markets and limited access to financing and credit.

This event, hosted by UNDP and Generali, will showcase new research on ASEAN SMEs’ vulnerability to climate and other risks, and present concrete solutions to build SME resilience through holistic and innovative risk management solutions, including insurance.

Join us for the launch of the report 'Building MSME Resilience in Southeast Asia' presenting data, evidence and solutions to build the resilience of critical SME value chains in Thailand and Malaysia. The SME Loss Prevention Framework will be presented as a practical tool designed to help SMEs better understand and manage their risks. The event will also showcase solutions from the UNDP-Generali Insurance Innovation Challenge Fund (IICF) for Malaysia.

Speakers:

Key event themes:

• Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) form the backbone of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) economies and are key engines of growth in the region.
• In the ASEAN, MSMEs make up 97% of the private sector, account for 85% of the labour force, 45% of regional GDP and 10-30% of exports.
• Despite their contribution to socio-economic growth, MSMEs remain highly vulnerable to risks – with less than 5% of MSMEs in the ASEAN region having any form of insurance.
• MSME vulnerability is not only a development challenge but also a commercial market opportunity as the MSME market is potentially vast and highly underserved.
• Insurers generally struggle to reach and distribute products to MSMEs for a number of reasons including products not offering sufficient value, the high proportion of MSMEs that are unbanked or inaccessible, limited data, and how vastly MSMEs differ based on size, age, sector, etc.
• A joint UNDP Generali report on 'Building MSME Resilience in Southeast Asia’ will be launced at the event, detailing the key risks SMEs are exposed to in the ASEAN and an alternative approach to insurance for MSMEs - with a country focus on Thailand and Malaysia.
• This alternative approach starts with effectively segmenting MSMEs to understand their risk profiles. The report explores priority value chains and risks for Thailand and Malaysia, including Natural rubber, Food & accomodation, Wholesale & retail and Electrical & electronics.
• The event will launch a SME Loss prevention framework as a practical and accessible tool for SMEs to understand and mitigate their risks.
• Participants of the UNDP Generali Insurance Innovative Challenge Fund will showcase their innovative solutions to support business resilience in Malaysia.
• The event will also highlight the important role of both public and private sectors in safeguarding vulnerable communities and helping to develop SME capacities to manage risks.
• A comparison of the research on climate risk-resilience of SMEs in developing countries in the ASEAN region can stimulate further discussion on whether experiences and learnings can be transferred to other developing countries.

Read more:

• UNDP and Generali partner to develop insurance and risk finance solutions
• Innovation challenge to support business resilience in Malaysia

 About UNDP:

UNDP is the leading United Nations organization fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, we help nations to build integrated, lasting solutions for people and planet.

About UNDP’s Insurance and Risk Finance Facility:

UNDP’s the Insurance and Risk Finance Facility (IRFF), is a flagship initiative housed within the organization’s Sustainable Finance Hub. It is currently working in more than 20 countries and will move to 50 countries by 2025. All of the IRFF work is aligned to the goals of the InsuResilience Vision 2025 which aims to cover 500 million people with insurance solutions in developing countries in the next three years.

About the Generali Group:

Generali is one of the largest global insurance and asset management providers. Established in 1831, it is present in over 50 countries in the world, with a total premium income of € 81.5 billion in 2022. With 82,000 employees serving 68 million customers, the Group has a leading position in Europe and a growing presence in Asia and Latin America. At the heart of Generali’s strategy is its Lifetime Partner commitment to customers, achieved through innovative and personalised solutions, best-in-class customer experience and its digitalised global distribution capabilities. The Group has fully embedded sustainability into all strategic choices, with the aim to create value for all stakeholders while building a fairer and more resilient society.