Paul Murray, CEO Reinsurance Asia at Swiss Re
India is vulnerable to weather risks and its adaptive capacity for climate change is low when measured against the Swiss Re Institute’s Climate Economics Index, which ranks India 45th (out of 48 markets), with only the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia trailing behind. If no mitigating action is taken, loss to GDP could be as high as 6.4% by 2030
Mumbai:
Delaying progress on sustainability-related commitments could have serious social, economic and environmental implications for India.
The key issue for a rapidly developing economy like India is to balance structural demand for resources with meeting UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Net-zero planning and investment will not only mitigate losses, but could generate as many as 37 million additional jobs, amounting to almost 5% of the workforce, by 2050, finds Swiss Re Institute report, “Shaping a sustainable future for India: How insurers can help”.
Paul Murray, CEO Reinsurance Asia at Swiss Re, said: “The re/insurance industry plays an important role in India’s sustainability journey as risk carriers, institutional investors and risk consultants – but the industry cannot drive sustainable growth alone. A collective effort is required with strong support from both the public and private sectors if we are to accelerate India’s focus on sustainability.”
India is vulnerable to weather risks and its adaptive capacity for climate change is low when measured against the Swiss Re Institute’s Climate Economics Index, which ranks India 45th (out of 48 markets), with only the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia trailing behind. If no mitigating action is taken, loss to GDP could be as high as 6.4% by 2030.
“As much as 40% of India’s GDP is dependent on biodiversity and ecosystem services and yet, our analysis reveals 28% of the land in India has a ‘very low’ capacity to support economic activity,” said John Zhu, Chief Economist Asia at Swiss Re.
“This means India remains vulnerable to ecological disturbances. Resilience in agriculture, health risk mitigation, and sustainability pathways in energy, manufacturing and transportation can help,” he said.
Impact on health, productivity, and lives
Poor progress on sustainability-related commitments will not only impact material infrastructures, but also the health and lives of people. Air pollution alone could result in up to 1.64 million annual premature deaths. Biodiversity loss and increasing temperatures could result in higher mortality rates, as well as impact food production and nutrition rates.
Decarbonisation, on the other hand, could result in a significant health dividend, such as reducing the incidence of asthma by half.
The report finds numerous sustainability pathways for mitigating health risks and suggests how insurers can help. Improving insurance affordability and accessibility across key areas of sustainability can also be supported by harnessing digital technology.
A whole-of-society approach is needed for the green transition
Public policy is crucial for designing, executing, and scaling sustainability-based programmes, but the private sector must also contribute through innovation and investment.
“India must adopt a whole-of-society approach to sustainability that addresses climate, infrastructure and health combined,” said Hadi Riachi, CEO Swiss Re India Branch.
“With India committing to net zero by 2070, the future will also call for sustainable infrastructure and industrial development to make our cities and businesses more climate resilient, productive, and attractive to investors. Sustainable infrastructure will also be fundamental to securing equitable access to economic development opportunities, supporting economic growth and social resilience by enabling access to vital services, trade hubs and job markets,”said Hadi.
The launch of the report coincides with the conclusion of Swiss Re’s Nirantar Bharat (Sustainable India) series.