KINGSTON, Jamaica — Jamaica’s leading industry body for insurance providers, the Insurance Association of Jamaica (IAJ), has unveiled plans for a major national business conference focused on tackling the most pressing challenges and opportunities currently reshaping the country’s insurance landscape. Scheduled to take place on April 20 and 21, the event will carry the forward-looking theme “Charting the Future Together – Strengthening the Insurance Ecosystem”, and is designed to convene a diverse cross-section of key stakeholders from across the sector.
Attendees and participants will include top industry executives, financial regulators, government policymakers, and technology innovators, all gathering to collaborate on mapping a more resilient, adaptive future for Jamaica’s insurance industry. The conference’s core agenda centers on three high-priority topics: robust risk management strategies, targeted measures to combat insurance fraud, and accelerated digital transformation across all industry operations.
As the official representative organization for Jamaica’s entire insurance sector, the IAJ has long held a central role in advancing the industry’s shared goals. It works continuously to lift industry-wide ethical standards, foster closer collaboration between competing and complementary stakeholders, and position insurance as a foundational tool for household financial protection, national disaster resilience, and sustained long-term economic growth for the island nation.
In a statement announcing the event, IAJ Executive Director Everton McFarlane emphasized that the upcoming conference fills a critical need as a unifying platform for driving both constructive dialogue and tangible action across the sector. “At a time when households and businesses across Jamaica are grappling with growing exposure to both financial volatility and environmental hazards, it is more important than ever that we deepen cross-sector collaboration, embrace innovative solutions, and strengthen the protective systems that underpin our national economy,” McFarlane explained.
Beyond general collaborative sessions, the conference will feature structured keynote addresses and targeted high-level roundtable discussions digging into specific industry priorities, including the evolving threat of insurance fraud, ongoing regulatory reform efforts, and the integration of emerging digital technologies to boost operational efficiency and improve end-to-end customer experiences.
A robust lineup of distinguished guest speakers has been confirmed for the event, bringing cross-sector expertise across policy, business, finance, and law. These include Matthew Samuda, Jamaica’s Minister of Water, Environment and Climate Change, who will deliver a address focused on climate-related risk assessment and industry-wide sustainability efforts; Courtney Campbell, president and chief executive officer of VM Group, who will share his insights on how to leverage technology and values-driven leadership to strengthen Jamaica’s entire insurance ecosystem; Sanya Goffe, a partner at the prominent Jamaican law firm Hart Muirhead Fatta, who will break down strategies for building a robust, sustainable national pension ecosystem; and Steven Whittingham, chairman of the Jamaica Stock Exchange and CEO of GK Financial Group, who will draw on his experience leading strategic growth and regional digital transformation at GraceKennedy to share actionable expertise.