PROFILETHE GENERAL INSURANCE INSTITUTE OF JAPANCONTENTS
PAGE
ABOUT THE INSTITUTE ......................................................................................................... 1
A BRIEF HISTORY .................................................................................................................. 2
ESTABLISHMENT .............................................................................................................. 2
AFTER WORLD WAR II ...................................................................................................... 2
EXPANSION ....................................................................................................................... 2
ACTIVITIES .............................................................................................................................. 4
I. EDUCATION ....................................................................................................................... 4
1. NON-LIFE INSURANCE EDUCATIONAL COURSES ................................................... 4
2. THE INSURANCE SCHOOL (NON-LIFE) OF JAPAN (ISJ)........................................... 6
II. RESEARCH ....................................................................................................................... 9
RESEARCH ACTIVITIES .................................................................................................... 9III. LIBRARY......................................................................................................................... 10
IV. PUBLICATIONS ............................................................................................................. 11
THE INSTITUTE’S JOURNAL “STUDY OF NON-LIFE INSURANCE”.............................. 11
TEXTBOOKS FOR NON-LIFE INSURANCE EDUCATIONAL COURSES ....................... 11
ENGLISH TEXTBOOKS ON NON-LIFE INSURANCE IN JAPAN..................................... 11
OTHER PUBLICATIONS ON NON-LIFE INSURANCE .................................................... 11
V. PROMOTION OF SCHOLARLY STUDY......................................................................... 12
JUDICIAL CASE STUDY................................................................................................... 12
SUBSIDIES FOR SCHOLARLY STUDY OF NON-LIFE INSURANCE ............................. 12
ORGANIZATION(AS OF JULY 1, 2024) .......................................................................... 13ABOUT THE INSTITUTEThe General Insurance Institute of Japan was founded in 1933 and is recognized
as the oldest insurance institute in Asia. Authorized by the Japanese government,
the institute is a Public Interest Incorporated Foundation. Tasked with the objectiveof contributing to the sound development of non-life insurance and to the national
economy by promoting the theoretical study of non-life insurance, theharmonization of its theory and practice, and the continuing education of insurance
practitioners, the institute is engaged in the following undertakings:

EDUCATIONRESEARCH

Training programs and seminars concerning non-life
insurance and related business activities

Research and collection of materials concerning
various aspects of non-life insurance

Operation of a library for the benefit of the public,

LIBRARY

PUBLICATIONSPROMOTION

academic circles and the insurance industry

Information services through publications on a wide
range of topics concerning non-life insurance

Assistance to those engaged in the search for
improvement
insurance field1

anddevelopment

of

the

non-life

A BRIEF HISTORYESTABLISHMENT
Proposed by Mr. Kenkichi Kagami, chairman of The Tokio Marine & Fire InsuranceCo., Ltd., to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the foundation of the company,
the General Insurance Institute of Japan was established in 1933 with funds donatedby the company.

AFTER WORLD WAR II
The institute was compelled to suspend its activities when all of its properties werelost in the flames of war in May 1945. In 1947, the General Insurance Association ofJapan decided to provide financial support for the activities of the institute. The
funding of the institute was accordingly transferred to the association, and since thattime the institute has been successfully developing its activities with the co-operationof every member company of the association.

EXPANSION
In light of a changing business environment in which the need for research oncommon market issues from a medium to long-term perspective grew rapidly within
the non-life insurance industry, in 1990 the institute enlarged both its organization andscope of activities.

In April 2011, responding to a statutory change, the institute obtained authorizationfrom the government to become a Public Interest Incorporated Foundation, a special
legal status for organizations that operate in the interests of the public. Since thistransition, the institute has continued to commit itself to the objective of contributing2

to the development of the national economy and to the improvement in stability of the
lives of citizens through the sound development of non-life insurance and related
business activities.

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ACTIVITIES

I. EDUCATION
1.

NON-LIFE INSURANCE EDUCATIONAL COURSES

The institute holds the following insurance education and training courses.

Introductory Course

The purpose of the Introductory Course is to provide participants with basic,
essential and practical insurance knowledge via eight-hundred repeatable webbased quizzes. This basic knowledge includes insurance theory, insurance laws
and regulations (for both non-life and life insurance businesses), and related
subjects such as taxation and social insurance. This course is suitable for those
who have just begun a career in insurance, or for those interested in learning
about the field. In consideration of participant convenience, the course isdesigned to be accessed and completed anytime/anywhere via mobile devices
such as smartphones and tablets. In 2023, 883 people undertook the Introductory
Course.

Regular / Basic Courses
The institute’s main training course is the one-year Regular Course, which aims
to provide in-depth knowledge of non-life insurance theory and practice. It
currently consists of 13 subjects, such as Principles of Insurance, Insurance
Laws, Risk Management and Financial Science. Initiated in 1953, the Regular
Course is mandatory for every managerial career track employee in mostinsurance companies. Certificates are awarded to participants who complete thecourse and pass the examinations.

Less extensive than the Regular Course, the Basic Course was initiated in 20114

for employees with limited job scope. Studied over seven months, the course
consists of five subjects.

In 2023, while 1,163 people undertook the Regular Course, 82 people undertook
the Basic Course. In order to provide educational support to a much wider crosssection of the industry, the courses are now open not only to Japanese andforeign insurers doing business in Japan, but also to cooperatives andintermediaries.

Advanced Course

The Advanced Course was launched in 2014 to provide enhanced underwriting
and service skills to mid-level employees. Participants can choose from aselection of ten subjects covering the fields of underwriting, claims, andcorporate-management. Each subject consists of two or three in-class lectures,
which are also provided online. In 2023, the total number of people who
undertook the Advanced Course was 592.

Specific Courses

Designed to provide advanced education on specific matters related to non-life
insurance and associated fields, Specific Courses cover many different subjects,
with each one being comprised of several sessions that are presented at varying
intervals during the year. Applicants are free to select subjects depending on theirinterests and needs. As a measure against the Covid-19 pandemic, every
Specific Course in 2022 was provided online rather than in the traditional faceto-face format.

Each Specific Course starts twice a month (on the 1st and 15th), and can be seenand studied for 30 days. In 2023, a total of 329 people attended Specific Courses
on 92 subjects.

5Special Seminars

Special seminars are one-day sessions that provide a broad range of specialized
knowledge and information directly and indirectly related to insurance. In 2023,
1,603 people participated in 24 special seminars.

Chosen from among topics which could have an impact on the future of theinsurance business, past seminar themes have included:-

Challenging the Protection Gap: A New Paradigm for Insurance-

Embedded Insurance: Current Status and Future Prospects-

Recent Trends and Issues on Laws and Regulations Related to Autonomous
VehiclesThe most popular seminar was “Explanation of Fraudulent Claim Cases Abusing
Natural Disasters”, which attracted some 122 participants.

2. THE INSURANCE SCHOOL (NON-LIFE) OF JAPAN (ISJ)International cooperation in the field of insurance first drew world attention in October
1966 when the Committee on Invisibles and Financing related to Trade (CIFT) under
the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) put forward
its recommendations. It recommended that developed countries make an active
commitment to international cooperation with developing countries in the field of
insurance and reinsurance, including technical assistance, training of humanresources and exchange of information and data. In 1968, the recommendation was
adopted at the 2nd meeting of the UNCTAD in New Delhi, India and was readopted
at the 3rd meeting in Santiago, Chile in 1972.

Coincidentally, the East Asia Insurance Congress (EAIC) began talks in the 1960s on
how they could best develop regional collaboration in the field of insurance, including
the training of human resources. In particular, at its meeting in Seoul, Korea in 1968,highly-charged discussions focused on the idea of founding an Asian Insurance
Research Center and an Insurance Training Program. However, this plan was

6premature given the circumstances of the time.

In light of the recommendations adopted by the UN organization and the discussion
developing locally in the East Asian region, the Japanese non-life insurance industry
started extensive studies on how it could effectively disseminate, specifically to East
Asian insurance professionals, the knowledge and expertise that it had accumulated
through its own business operations in Japan.

In October 1971, a draft plan to launch a permanent educational program forinsurance practitioners in the regions of East Asia was unanimously approved by themembers of the General Insurance Association of Japan. The program, entitled theInsurance School (Non-Life) of Japan, started in July 1972 and has been jointly
organized and run by the association and the institute every year since. In 2022, theISJ celebrated its 50th anniversary.

ISJ- General Course

An educational and training program for insurance practitioners based in East
Asian regions, the ISJ has been held in Tokyo every year since it commenced in1972. The name of the course was changed to “General Course” when the
Advanced Course was created in 1991.

Between its inception in 1972 and the 49th session in November 2023, 1,625
participants from 16 regions had graduated from the course.

Due to the lift of COVID-19 related travel restrictions, the 49th session was heldin two parts; the first in an online format and the second face-to-face, from midNovember to early December.

ISJ- Advanced Course

This course was launched in 1991 with the objective of providing more advanced
knowledge and information to experienced or managerial level staff from thesame regions, principally graduates of the General Course.

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The 34th Session of the ISJ Advanced Course was held in two parts; the first in
an online format (in May 2024) and the second face-to-face (in June 2024).

Between its inception in 1991 and the 34th session in 2024, 696 participants from15 regions had graduated from the course.

ISJ- Overseas Seminar

This program was started in 1993 with the aim of providing information on
subjects that regional insurance markets are interested in acquiring from theJapanese market. Each year, one or two locations are selected as venues fromamong the regions. The seminars are organized with the help of the respective
regional non-life insurance associations.

The topics of the seminars are chosen according to the needs of the regional
markets in collaboration with local co-sponsors. Along with institute staff, staff
members of insurance companies with expertise in the fields from which the
topics are chosen are sent from Japan as lecturers and coordinators.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the overseas seminars were held online on
demand from 2020 to 2022. However, the 2023 seminar was held in Phnom Penhfor the first time in four years for insurance industry professionals in Cambodia.
Since its inception in 1993 to its 30th session in 2023, approx. 6,120 participants
have attended the seminars.

8II. RESEARCHRESEARCH ACTIVITIESThe institute conducts extensive research on medium to long-term issues emanatingfrom changes and developments in the economic, social and financial environment
surrounding the non-life insurance industry.

The Research Department was set up in July 1990 with the aim of functioning as athink-tank to provide the industry with advice and essential materials for the study of
its roles and the direction to take in the new era.

During the 2023 term, studies were conducted on the following two subjects:-

The Status of Utilization of Data, Including Personal Identification Numbers, andEfforts to Standardize Operations in the Insurance Industry in Major Countries-

Recent Developments in Insurance Regulation and Supervision in Major
Countries - Focus on Solvency Regulation and Business Scope of General
Insurers

In addition to the above studies, the Research Department published quarterly
reports on topical subjects, with 6 main themes related to the business of non-life
insurance.

9III. LIBRARY

The library collection accumulated since the foundation of the institute wascompletely destroyed during World War II. The rebuilding of the library, which started
soon after the war, was deeply indebted to Dr. Kotaro Shida, ex-dean of Meiji
University, and to Dr. Zen-ichi Takiya and Dr. Ikusaburo Shiina, all three of whom
donated large quantities of books. Since that time, the institute has accumulated an
extensive collection of works on non-life insurance subjects, as well as on legal,
economic and in other fields, too.

Currently, the library comprises some 22,200 volumes and 519 periodicals.
The institute’s library is used not only by employees of non-life insurance companies,
but also by scholars, students and people from various fields seeking information
concerning non-life insurance. Enquiries can be made via the Internet, by telephoneor by fax, and library staff will carry out a search and recommend appropriate readingmaterial.

10IV. PUBLICATIONSTHE INSTITUTE’S JOURNAL “STUDY OF NON-LIFE INSURANCE”
Issued quarterly by the institute, this journal has continued to feature both academic
and practical studies of non-life insurance since its first issue in 1935. It has earned
a wide reputation as a publication of high-level academic study on the theory andpractice of non-life insurance. In 2018, the journal introduced the peer review system
in order to improve its quality (although the journal is not a peer-reviewed-onlyjournal).
Some of the journal’s recent theses can be read via the online academic journal
platform.
https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/browse/giiij/-char/ja

TEXTBOOKS FOR NON-LIFE INSURANCE EDUCATIONAL COURSES
The institute currently publishes a series of 17 textbooks. Though mainly for use on
the Regular Course, they are also occasionally used for insurance lectures at certain
universities.

ENGLISH TEXTBOOKS ON NON-LIFE INSURANCE IN JAPANFocusing on the practice of non-life insurance in Japan, the institute publishes aseries of textbooks written in English for use on ISJ courses. Whilst one is entitled‘Overview of the Non-Life Insurance Business’, other currently published textbooks
cover Fire, Marine and Inland Transit, Automobile, Miscellaneous Casualty(Commercial Lines), Miscellaneous Casualty (Personal Lines), Reinsurance, The
Insurance Act, and Insurance Regulation.

OTHER PUBLICATIONS ON NON-LIFE INSURANCE
The institute publishes books, mostly on a non-profit basis, on subjects concerning
non-life insurance and its related fields that are of academic value.

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V. PROMOTION OF SCHOLARLY STUDYJUDICIAL CASE STUDYIn April 2008, the institute started a new society for the study of judicial cases in the
non-life insurance field, which is comprised of about 50 members from universities,
law offices and the non-life insurance industry. Results of the studies are publishedin the institute’s journal, the “Study of Non-Life Insurance”.

SUBSIDIES FOR SCHOLARLY STUDY OF NON-LIFE INSURANCEIn 1972, the institute began offering subsidies to young scholars and graduate
students engaged in the study of non-life insurance science for their expenditure on
books. In order to expand the range of use to include general research, in 1993, theinstitute restructured the subsidies offered on condition that any researchundertaken is related to non-life insurance. Some 177 beneficiaries received grants
between 1972 and 2023.

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ORGANIZATION(as of July 1, 2024)

COUNCIL

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

AUDITORSPLANNING AND ADMINISTRATION DEPT.

EDUCATION DEPT.

INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION DEPT.

RESEARCH DEPT.
EDITORIAL DEPT.

LIBRARY

SECRETARIAT FOR THE JAPANESE SOCIETY OF INSURANCE

Chairman: Jiro Makino
President: Hiroyuki Gotoh

Number of full-time staff: 33

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ADDRESS:

Sonpo-kaikan Building
9, Kanda Awajicho 2-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-8335, Japan

OfficeTelephone:+81 (0)3 3255-5511

Facsimile:+81 (0)3 3255-1449

URL https://www.sonposoken.or.jp (Japanese and English)

Library
Telephone:+81 (0)3 3255-5513

Facsimile:+81 (0)3 3255-5537

URL https://www.sonposoken.or.jp/library (Japanese only)2024.7 updated