Eurasia Press & News
Syrian Finance Minister Mohammed Yosr Bernieh , in his capacity as chair of the board of Syria’s Insurance Supervision Authority, announced the dissolution of the Syrian Insurance Companies Union and the Insurance Agents and Brokers Union.
In a post on LinkedIn today, Friday 12 December, the minister said the move is one in a series of steps to reform and develop the insurance sector. He noted that elections will be held within two months to form two new councils for the unions, alongside efforts to update and modernize their bylaws.
Bernieh also revealed that a comprehensive national strategy has been developed and will be announced soon, aimed at advancing the sector and strengthening its role in serving the Syrian economy and development in the coming years. The strategy seeks to establish global standards and best practices, combat corruption, and enhance governance, which he said would contribute to a leap in the size of Syria’s insurance market.
Decision No. 52 of 2025, issued by the Insurance Supervision Authority, stipulates dissolving the board of the Syrian Insurance Companies Union and appointing an interim committee consisting of Basil Abboud, Izzat Ostewani, and Ammar Naser Agha to manage the union’s affairs.
The decision also calls for an extraordinary general assembly meeting within a maximum of 60 days to elect a new board, and directs the Insurance Supervision Authority, in cooperation with the interim committee, to prepare a draft of a new bylaw.
Decision No. 53 of 2025 stipulates dissolving the board of the Insurance Agents and Brokers Union and appointing an interim committee consisting of Reem al-Jamal, George Sarhan, and Nour Fouko to run the union and to call for an extraordinary general assembly meeting within a maximum of 60 days to elect a new board.
The decision also tasked the Insurance Supervision Authority, in cooperation with the interim committee, with drafting a new bylaw for the union.
A plan expected to reform medical insurance
On 11 October, Finance Minister Mohammed Yosr Bernieh announced that a meeting had been held for the joint committee of the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance, and the Insurance Supervision Authority to develop a work plan and a comprehensive road map aimed at reforming Syria’s medical insurance system.
He said the plan would begin by reforming health insurance services for state employees, before moving to a broader reform of the health coverage system.
The reform process will rely on two main pillars, digital transformation and combating corruption and misuse, with the aim of improving the system’s efficiency and ensuring better use of resources.
Free health services will be limited to low income groups and the poor under clear regulations, while those able to pay will be asked to contribute to some fees for the services they receive.
Restructuring Syria’s insurance sector
At the end of last April, the Insurance Supervision Authority began linking insurance systems electronically with management companies to improve coordination, update insured individuals’ data, especially state employees, audit insurance companies’ expenditures to reduce financial waste, and reactivate frozen accounts to restore operational dynamism.
The authority added that its recent measures included requiring medical providers to renew their licenses to ensure quality, obligating providers to obtain clearance certificates after receiving their full financial dues, and evaluating management companies based on approved performance indicators.
It said these measures are part of a comprehensive plan to restructure the health insurance sector and achieve a qualitative shift by improving the quality of medical services, closing operational gaps, and ensuring the sector’s sustainability through precise mechanisms that enhance transparency and efficiency, and compensate for years of neglect.
