FWD to enter Malaysian life insurance market through Gibraltar BSN Life investment

FWD Group Holdings will enter the Malaysian life insurance market following the signing of an agreement to invest in a majority stake in Gibraltar BSN Life. The transaction is expected to close in Q223.

FWD Group, and other investors, will together hold an effective 70% stake in Gibraltar BSN, which was sold by The Prudential Insurance Company of America, the wholly owned subsidiary of US-based Prudential Financial, Inc. Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) will continue to hold the remaining 30% stake in Gibraltar BSN. Post-completion, FWD Group will partner with BSN to further develop and grow Gibraltar BSN.

Huynh Thanh Phong, Group CEO and Executive Director of FWD Group, said, "We're creating a full-service offering in Malaysia and will be able to offer both family takaful and life insurance solutions in a rapidly growing market with huge long-term potential for growth. We're excited to bring our digitally-enabled products and services to more people in Malaysia. With these strategic developments, we also substantially complete our footprint across key Southeast Asia markets in the 10th anniversary year for FWD Group. Changing the way people feel about takaful and insurance remains the vision that guides our work."

Malaysia is the 4th largest life insurance market by premium in Southeast Asia*, with highly attractive macroeconomic fundamentals and favourable demographics. FWD Group entered the Malaysian market in March 2019 as a provider of family takaful products, including term life, critical illness, cancer, hospital cash benefit and medical protection.

Binayak Dutta, FWD Group MD, Emerging Markets and Group Chief Distribution Officer said, "Our partnership with BSN underscores our commitment to the Malaysian market and we look forward to playing our part in the growth and development of Malaysia's takaful and insurance sectors. Since establishment, our business in Malaysia has gone from strength to strength. We grew gross written contributions by 173% in our first full year of operation**, established our regional technology and innovation hub in Kuala Lumpur and partnered with a leading social enterprise in Malaysia to develop Fun(d) for Life, a financial literacy programme supporting over 4,200 individuals***."

Existing customers and distribution channels of Gibraltar BSN will not be affected by this investment and all existing policies will continue to be honoured. Customers can also continue to access the company's products and services using their preferred service channels. Additionally, existing customers and distribution channels of FWD Takaful will not be affected. FWD Group plans to rebrand the Gibraltar BSN business at a later date.

*NMG; Swiss Re.

**Malaysia gross written contributions (GWC) grew by approximately 173% from 2020 to 2021. This is in comparison to the industry gross written premiums (GWP) in Malaysia, which grew by approximately 9% over the same period, according to NMG.

***As of 30 September 2022.

Madinah issues voluntary local review of SDGs

Source: Al Madinah Region Development Authority. Madinah, a sustainable city.

The Urban Observatory at Al Madinah Region Development Authority has issued the Madinah SDGs Voluntary Local Review (VLR) as the first VLR in KSA that covers nine sustainable development goals (SDGs). The move is a follow-up on the Voluntary National Review (VNR) in 2018, titled Towards the Sustainable Development of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia by the KSA Ministry of Economy and Planning.

The VLR aims to evaluate Madinah's current state of sustainable development and to assess it against national and international trends. The report comprises Madinah's sustainable development state in many fields, such as health, education, infrastructure, environment, housing, transport, and others, covering Goal 1 to Goal 8, and Goal 11. The SDGs are also localised in collaboration with government agencies, the private sector, the non-profit sector, and Madinah's civil society.

The Madinah Region Development Authority looks forward to continued collaboration with its partners to accelerate SDG targets at the local level through job creation, increased prosperity, and further development without burdening land and resources, while reducing pollution.

The VLR is in line with KSA's commitment to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development that was approved at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit 2015. The commitment is also aligned with Islamic values, the kingdom's VISION 2030 and its executive programmes.

Hajj registrations open in Oman from 21 February

The Omani Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs has announced that aspiring Hajj pilgrims may register online from 21 February to 4 March 2023, the Oman News Agency has reported.

The website requires national identification details or mobile phone numbers if the ID card and mobile chip are PKI-supported.

Nine hundred offered Hajj pilgrimage opportunity in Singapore

The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis) is issuing offers to 900 individuals for Hajj 2023. All selected pilgrims will be notified via SMS and email to check their letter of offer (LOO) via the MyHajSG portal.

To confirm their place for Hajj 2023, pilgrims must purchase their Hajj package from a travel agent authorised by Muis, and complete procedural requirements listed in the MyHajSG portal by 26 February 2023.

Thirteen travel agents have been appointed to provide Hajj-related services this year. Pilgrims can view the information on the authorised travel agents and approved Hajj packages for 2023 at go.gov.sg/haj2023packages.

There are 30 approved Hajj packages, half of which cover stays of between 15 and 23 days, and the remainder covering stays of between 24 and 30 days.

Package prices have gone up by S$1,500, Muis said, mainly due to the higher government taxes and accommodation costs. The cheapest package costs S$8,490 (quad occupancy), and the typical average package price for is around S$14,150 (double occupancy). All packages exclude emergency medical assistance (EMA) and airfare. Pilgrims are encouraged to purchase additional travel insurance to supplement the insurance coverage provided by the EMA.

Premier marine research and rescue centre opens in Abu Dhabi

SeaWorld Rescue has gone global with the launch of its first centre outside of the US. YasSeaWorld Research and Rescue (YSWRR), Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, is the first dedicated marine research and rescue centre in the MENA region. 

YSWRR joins three locations adjacent to SeaWorld parks in the US. Together the four locations support local, regional and global conservation efforts for dozens of species, many of which are threatened or endangered. 

The 8,602 m² YSWRR will be a key contributor to marine-life conservation in both the UAE and the wider MENA region through research, rescue, rehabilitation, return and education programmes, informed by SeaWorld's nearly 60 years of animal care and rescue experience. 

"The waters of the Arabian gulf are an important marine ecosystem and integral to the fabric of the Abu Dhabi community. The conservation of their marine animals and ecosystems is vital, and we are excited to be a part of this important effort. Expanding SeaWorld's nearly 60-year legacy of animal care and conservation globally and having the opportunity to share our knowledge with the region is an honor and a privilege," said Dr Chris Dold, Chief Zoological Officer of SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment.

The marine rescue and research centre will host rescue vehicles and equipment, including two custom-made rescue boats, a rescue clinic, a veterinary hospital, and aquaculture facility. The center will also have over 25 rescue pools, from large pools for marine mammals to smaller pools for fish, invertebrates and marine reptiles. Two of the larger pools are equipped with lifting floors, which will make access for treatment easier and less disruptive for the animals. An onsite lab is also equipped with advanced rescue and rehabilitation facilities, including the ability to conduct in-house pathology analysis for wildlife.

The centre also conducts fundamental research focusing on the marine ecology of the Arabian Gulf and covering topics such as marine biodiversity, ecosystem resilience, sensitive wildlife conservation, critical habitats, fisheries, pollution and wildlife health. Specifically, the focus on applied research studies for marine ecosystem restoration will include aquaculture-based projects on fish propagation, seagrass cultivation, coral reproduction as well as field projects focusing on critical habitats of Arabian Gulf waters such as seagrass, mangroves, oyster beds and coral reefs. 

This research will be supported by three dry laboratories, a wet laboratory, and a 345 m³ aquaculture facility which includes live feed culture rooms, brood stock pools and larvae culture pools. The centre's research team will conduct most of these studies with its 12.5 m research vessel.

The center was developed and will be operated by Miral, Abu Dhabi's creator of immersive destinations and experiences, and SeaWorld. The Chairman of Miral, HE Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, said: "We are very proud to begin 2023, the UAE's Year of Sustainability, with opening the first dedicated marine research and rescue center in the region, Yas SeaWorld Research & Rescue. This is a cornerstone in the emirate's journey of education and conservation, inspiring the next generation of marine scientists to learn more about Abu Dhabi's impactful long-term vision of protecting our marine wildlife and their habitats. 

"Together with SeaWorld, we will be pushing the limits of science and conservation to become the foremost knowledge hub for marine scientists, not only in the UAE but also in the wider region."

Source: SeaWorld. A rescue in progress.

Added the Chairman of SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, Scott Ross: "For nearly 60 years, SeaWorld has maintained its unwavering mission and steadfast commitment to protecting marine animals and their ecosystems and inspiring others to act and care for marine life. Our new centre in the UAE is an extension of this commitment and expands our reach to the Gulf region with a partner who is equally committed to protecting, preserving and honouring the importance of the sea, and will create a strong regional rescue network to protect and preserve native species in the Arabian Gulf."

Each rescue facility is dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating ill, injured or orphaned wildlife. Due to their deep expertise and innovative techniques, SeaWorld rescue teams have helped more than 40,000 animals, including whales, dolphins, seals, sea lions, turtles, manatees, otters and a wide range of other marine animals. At these facilities, animal care specialists, marine biologists and veterinarians also work on critical and life-changing research and conservation projects that impact animal care, veterinary knowledge, habitat restoration and species preservation.

If marine animals are spotted in danger in UAE waters, please call the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD) on 800 555.

Arabic speech-to-text technology introduced in KSA

Maqsam, a MENA-based cloud communications company, is on track to disrupt Arabic-speaking customer engagement.

Founded by Fouad Jeryes and Sinan Taifour, Maqsam has developed generative artificial intelligence (AI) in the field of Arabic automatic speech recognition (ASR), also known as speech-to-text (STT). The company's language models have outperformed Google, Microsoft, and other regional competitors in the race to accurately transcribe the diverse Arabic dialects of the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) region, Maqsam said.

Source: Maqsam. The first-of-its-kind STT solution was launched by Maqsam at LEAP 2023 in KSA.

Arabic has 422 million native speakers and around 1.5 billion total speakers globally, but is one of the most neglected languages when it comes to native deep tech offerings, Maqsam noted. Maqsam's technology can transcribe the different Arabic dialects spoken every day in MENA despite their varying orthographies, phonetics and phonological differences, reliably and cost-effectively. 

"Many years of experience went into achieving where we are today and yet this is the tip of the iceberg. Our competitive advantage lies within our proudly native and capable regional team of engineers, machine learning task force as well as mentors who are celebrated global leaders in this particular discipline. Our goal is one where we are helping enable the MENA region to unleash its true potential within a global revolution, rather than be an afterthought once more." said Taifour, CEO of Maqsam during their live showcase at the LEAP technology expo in Riyadh.

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