On 21 November, as part of the Alliance for Insurance and Social Policy established a year earlier between the D. A. Tsenov Academy of Economics and the Association of Bulgarian Insurers (ABZ), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Rumen Yerusalimov, Vice-Rector of the Academy and member of the ABZ Management Board, presented to outstanding students from the “Insurance and Social Policy” program the findings of the study “Insurance in Bulgaria – Economic Footprint and Development Challenges”, conducted by the Institute for Market Economics (IME). Commissioned by ABZ to mark 140 years of insurance in Bulgaria and 30 years since the establishment of the Association, the report is included in a special anniversary publication, the second part of which features notable facts and events from the history of Bulgarian insurance.
The lecture took place at the Center for Insurance and Social Policy at the D. A. Tsenov Academy, in the presence of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ventsislav Vasilev, Head of the Department of Insurance and Social Policy—the first academic department of its kind in Bulgaria—and Chief Assistant Dr. Aneliya Paneva, Scientific Secretary. The focus of the presentation was the IME’s analytical research. During the ensuing discussion, Assoc. Prof. Yerusalimov highlighted that although key indicators have improved in recent years, the Bulgarian insurance market still lags significantly behind those of Western European countries. In terms of market scope, voluntary insurance trails behind legally mandated policies, with life insurance in particular holding a much smaller share compared to general insurance. One of the key reasons, he noted, is the persistently low level of insurance literacy among Bulgarian citizens and businesses.
In his concluding remarks to students, Assoc. Prof. Yerusalimov stated: “You are the future ambassadors of the insurance idea in our country. It is up to you to raise the level of insurance awareness among the Bulgarian population to that of Western Europe.”
That same day, a meeting of the Department of Insurance and Social Policy was held. One agenda item was a discussion of the IME’s report, its findings, conclusions, and recommendations. All participants in the discussion agreed that the report would be valuable to students of the “Insurance and Social Policy” program in their studies, offering them an additional perspective on the development of insurance in Bulgaria. Some faculty members shared that they plan to incorporate selected analyses from the report into their seminar sessions in specialized insurance courses.
At the end of the meeting, Assoc. Prof. Yerusalimov donated 10 copies of the ABZ anniversary edition to the university library. Ms. Anka Taneva, Director of the Library, gratefully accepted the donation, stating that within minutes, the volumes would be cataloged in the insurance section and made available to readers. This will give the academic community—and especially the students of the Academy—an opportunity to explore in detail the analyses and findings of the study, and to learn more about the 140-year history of insurance in Bulgaria, in which the Svishtov academy plays a key role as the country’s first educational center for training insurance professionals in theory and practice.
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