This was stated by Matthew Hill, Chief Executive Officer of the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), at the 11th Azerbaijan International Insurance Forum.
According to him, Azerbaijan has launched a program to enhance professionalism in financial services, particularly in insurance. "This program is now gaining momentum. For example, the priorities of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan—such as expanding participation, strengthening trust, and transitioning the market to a more modern regulatory system—fully align with CII's own ambitions. I was particularly impressed by the emphasis placed on public trust, as well as the goal of raising the trust index to 80%," noted M. Hill.
The CII head emphasized that, according to most long-term economic indicators, humanity is wealthier today than ever before: "Average per capita income has risen sharply. As productivity has grown, global output has steadily increased. Rapid growth outside the economic power centers of the 20th century has lifted hundreds of millions out of poverty. Historically, in 1800 about 80% of the population lived in extreme poverty, while today that share is negligible on a global scale. From 1990 to 2019, global inequality between countries decreased. This is partly because poorer countries developed faster than rich ones. That is why economists often say we have moved from a world divided into rich and poor countries to a world with a more integrated global middle class."