INSPENONLINE: Conferences on responsible investment practice in the Government pension fund global

Friday, 30 August 2013

Conferences on responsible investment practice in the Government pension fund global

The Ministry of Finance has asked the Strategy Council for the Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG) to write a report on the strategy for responsible investment. The report will be presented autumn 2013. The Strategy Council has recently organised two conferences on responsible investments as part of this work. Two new publications summarises the dialogue with experts and stakeholders at these conferences.

The US$ 760 billion Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG) is now one of the largest Funds in the world. The Norwegian Ministry of Finance earlier this year asked the Fund's Strategy Council to review its approach to responsible investment.

Mr Sigbjørn Johnsen, the Norwegian Minister of Finance, said:

"Independent, academic discussions are very useful in our work to develop the management of the GPFG. It helps us contribute transparency and debate to important decision making, and supports us in our goal of wanting an open process concerning the work of the Strategy Council towards their report on GPFG's strategy for responsible investments."

As part of this initiative, the Strategy Council organised two open meetings. Summaries of the discussions at these gatherings have just been accepted for publication in the Journal of Investment Management.

Two meetings

The objective of the Strategy Council was to bring together experts to discuss the purposes and strategies for responsible investment, and to develop a framework connecting the investment decisions of larger asset owners with economic, social and governance issues. The two events – one held at Cambridge Judge Business School, the other at BI Norwegian Business School – were conducted with the support of the Norwegian Ministry of Finance.

Professor Elroy Dimson, Chairman of the Strategy Council, said:

"We were joined by many experts on responsible investing. The aim was to deepen the Council's awareness of current research and experience, and to provide an opportunity to hear and discuss perspectives on investor responsibility. This dialogue has underpinned our work on the Fund's strategy for responsible investments."

The first meeting was the Responsible Investing Summit, organised by the Centre for Endowment Asset Management at Cambridge Judge Business School on 31 May 2013. TheSummit at Cambridge University brought together leading academics from around the world, along with asset owners and managers and other international experts. Their mission was to debate the purposes and outcomes of responsible investing strategies.

The second meeting was the Responsible Investment Conference, held at the BI Norwegian Business School in Oslo on 20 June 2013. The Conference provided a platform for NGOs and other stakeholders to provide inputs and discuss priorities for responsible investing. There were lively exchanges of views with stakeholders on the environmental, social, and governance priorities for the Fund.

The Ministry of Finance's State Secretary, Ms Hilde Singsaas, summed up the process succinctly:

Source: government.no / Norway Today

No comments:

Lawal is Inspen 2014 insurance man of the year

The former President Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) Fatai Lawal has emerged the 2014 Inspenonline Insurance Man of the year.

Fatai who is the the Managing Director Sterling Assurance Nigeria Limited was named today, at the Nigerian Insurance and Pension Award organised by Inspenonline.

Chief Executive Officer Inspenonline Media, Chuks Udo Okonta, said Lawal was picked from the votes casted by the public and other considerations made by the award's panel of assessors.

He noted that the winner raised the bar at the the Institute and the industry by opting to serve a tenure which was eventful and impactful. He added that amongst the legacies left by the winner was the printing and donation of Insurance books to secondary and tertiary institutions aimed at deepening insurance awareness.

Okonta noted that the award, which started two years ago with the recognition of two distinguished individuals and an underwriting company, has now come to stay.

"This year, we decided to raise the bar by setting high standards to judge the operations of companies and impacts made by individuals in moving insurance and pension business forward.

"To achieve this, we gave the public the opportunity to select those to be celebrated by calling for votes. Having harmonised the votes which came from different parts of the country, we benchmarked the scores with the set standard to arrive at the winners we are celebrating today," he said.

Others winners are AIICO Insurance Plc, Insurance company of the year; FUG Pensions Limited, Pension Fund Administrator of the Year; YOA Insurance Brokers Limited and Glanvill Enthoven Insurance Brokers Limited, Insurance Broker of the year.

Professional Excellence Award went to Professor Joe Irukwu; Best Professional Group went to the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria and Association of Registered Insurance Agents of Nigeria; Corporate Brand went to Mansard Insurance Plc and Leadway Assurance Limited while Corporate Social Responsibility Award was won by Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc.

The organisers also recognised organisations that distinguished themselves, with Excellence Award. Organisations in this category include the National Pension Commission, Lagos State Pension Commission, Goldlink Insurance Plc and Pension Transition Administration Directorate.

Casino and Gaming Insurance

Anyone who operates or is considering opening up a casino or gaming establishment, requires insurance. As an online gambler, it is important that you play at a gambling establishment that follows reputable business practices. The best casinos are those that do not just protect their customers, but also protects themselves.

If you’re going to gamble online, you need to make sure that you choose a high-quality site like PlayMillion.com. Leading virtual casinos in the online gambling industry provide players with a secure and fair gaming environment. At PlayMillion, Players can enjoy 24/7 customer support, a multi-lingual platform, a VIP Lounge, a variety of promotions, and a truly generous signup bonus.

Customers of this internet casino brand can also enjoy great games like Caribbean Poker. This is an exciting card game and an interesting poker variant. Unlike other variants of this popular card game, while this version is similar to five-card stud, your opponent is the house, not the other players. Online Caribbean Stud is an exciting way to experience poker quickly and conveniently, whenever you want.

What else do you need to know about casinos and insurance? Unless you are a casino operator, there really isn’t anything else you need to think about. Essentially, when you are a player you need to concentrate on creating your own personal insurance to yourself. In other words, you need to make sure that you create a gambling budget and that you stick to it. Once you create a bankroll, your goal should never be to deplete it. This makes certain that you will always have money with which you can play. Equally, you should set yourself winning and losing limits, so you know when to call it a day.
　