Risk management is the process of identifying, analysing, accepting, mitigating or transferring uncertainty in investment decisions. Fund managers apply risk management by analysing and attempting to quantify the potential loss of an investment and then acting accordingly.

From November 2022 to April 2023, the Social Insurance Bank (Sociale Verzekeringsbank – SVB) of the Netherlands conducted a pilot programme to address the underutilization of the AIO supplement among eligible households. This initiative aligned with the SVB’s crucial mission of providing citizens with social security.

Institutions are being transformed thanks to the integration of new technologies. This vision represents a corporate change with a social impact, reducing costs, simplifying processes and procedures, and raising awareness of the importance and benefits of this transformation.

Article 12 of Law No. 5508 on the Promotion, Protection of Maternity and Support for Breastfeeding establishes that maternity allowance should be paid to employed women by the social security scheme of Paraguay’s Social Insurance Institute (Instituto de Previsión Social – IPS). This amount is equivalent to 100 per cent of her salary at the time of delivery, and is paid for the prescribed months of rest. This used to be given to women in a single payment.

The issue of population growth and social security planning is one of the biggest challenges facing governments today, and is a key part of a good social security system that instils confidence in its members.

The Retirement and Pension Fund for Employees of Banks and Related Institutions (Caja de Jubilaciones y Pensiones de Empleados de Bancos y Afines) (Bank Fund, hereinafter) is in constant communication with its members. It therefore continuously updates its databases, in order to have a better understanding of members’ current realities, experiences and needs.

Digital transformation is happening in institutions through the integration of new technologies. This vision represents an institutional and social change, optimizing available resources, reducing costs, shortening processes and procedures, and raising awareness of the importance and benefits of this transformation.

Good practice in health – service quality.

As health-care systems have evolved to become more complex and due to the resultant increase in patients coming to harm in health care settings, patient safety has emerged as a health-care discipline.

The Actuarial Advisory Office (Asesoría Actuarial) of the Social Insurance Institute (Instituto de Previsión Social – IPS) carried out an actuarial valuation of the Common Retirement and Pension Fund (Fondo Común de Jubilaciones y Pensiones). The valuation looks to comply with international best practices and observe the guidelines and standards of the International Standards of Actuarial Practice 2 (ISAP 2), and the ISSA-ILO Guidelines on Actuarial Work for Social Security, with technical support from the International Labour Organization (ILO).

Like most of the world’s countries, Paraguay has adopted lockdown measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. These steps taken by the government have impacted the productive sector, leading to mass suspensions of employment contracts for persons insured with the Social Insurance Institute (Instituto de Previsión Social – IPS) of Paraguay.

A project entitled "smart verification" was set up at the SVB, involving increasing use of customized arrangements and risk analyses. For example, by tailoring communication to individual clients, costs can be saved and clients are encouraged to report changes sooner and more accurately. This allows the SVB to kill two birds with one stone, so to speak. More client-friendly means fewer forms (e.g. life certificates) are sent unnecessarily and verification is not carried out if it does not appear necessary.

This was achieved by means of a small adjustment to written communication with claimants in a process that has otherwise not changed. Claimants no longer receive a letter with a pre-filled claim form, but only a letter referring to the online claim service. Clients who want to use a paper form have to request one by telephone. This procedure has now become standard practice because of the success of the experiment. The experiment has also been repeated for AOW pension claims.

In recent years, this aim has been largely achieved by fully integrating the former front and back offices into service teams. Clients whose needs are not completely met by the SVB's automated services and who do not make use of the internet services we provide, can contact a member of a service team directly. The team's main remit is to deliver service which exceeds the client's expectations. Clients see the advantages of the service teams because the first person they contact with a question or problem is the person who will deal with it until it is answered or solved.

The code consists of a set of principles in the following 5 fields:

• compliance and monitoring;
• management;
• supervisory board;
• the Minister, the client and society; and
• financial reports, internal and external audit.

The find a more efficient way, the SVB has investigated to what extent the checks by means of the life certificate process have led to detection of relevant changes, which were not yet known.

In countries where the number or type of cases detected, which resulted in necessary changes of the benefits, is low, we are able to lower the frequency and/or intensiveness of the life certificate process.

Time and effort must be invested efficiently in the development of data exchange with other organisations. A responsible enforcement policy is therefore based on investigation and risk analysis. It is aimed at collecting information as to the way in which proven risks can best be controlled. This has resulted in effective data exchange with many other parties.