Manulife Vietnam celebrates 25th anniversary, commits to investing in community health

Tina Nguyễn, CEO of Manulife Vietnam, delivered her speech at a press conference in HCM City on Tuesday. — Photo courtesy of Manulife Vietnam

HCM CITY — Manulife Vietnam has celebrated its 25th anniversary, marking a quarter-century of development and success in serving customers across Việt Nam.

As a leading global financial corporation headquartered in Canada, Manulife entered the Vietnamese market in 1999, becoming the first foreign-invested life insurance business licensed to operate in the country.

Currently, the company holds the highest total investment capital in the insurance market, reaching nearly US$1 billion. Serving a portfolio of nearly 1.5 million customers across the country, Manulife Vietnam has paid more than VNĐ38.29 trillion in health, medical, and maturity benefits to customers over the past 25 years, providing necessary financial support in times of need.

On its 25th anniversary, Manulife Vietnam reaffirmed its long-term commitment to community health through its latest CSR campaign called ‘Living Clean-Smart-Green.’

The ‘Living Clean-Smart-Green’ campaign is designed to raise awareness about healthy living through three actions including Eat Clean,  Live Smart, and Stay Green, aiming to protect digestive health and prevent stomach cancer.

As part of the campaign, Manulife has collaborated with the Vietnam Young Physicians Association to organise free general health checkups and HP tests for low-income people in Hà Nội on July 6 and HCM City on July 13.

Additionally, Manulife Vietnam will widely disseminate messages on HP infection and stomach cancer prevention through public media to increase awareness.

For customers, Manulife Vietnam will organise seminars featuring leading experts and doctors who will share tips and solutions for preventing stomach cancer as well as HP bacterial infections.

Stomach cancer is one of the five most common cancers today, with an alarmingly increasing rate among the youth. Concerningly, the bacterium Helicobacter Pylori (HP), a major cause of stomach cancer, is still not fully recognised by many Vietnamese people.

According to data from the Ministry of Health, up to 70 per cent of Vietnamese people are infected with HP bacteria, and over 80 per cent of stomach cancer cases are related to this bacterium.

“We are incredibly proud to launch the ‘Live Clean-Smart-Green’ campaign as an integrated part of Manulife’s 25th anniversary in Việt Nam,” Tina Nguyễn, CEO of Manulife Vietnam said at a press conference in HCM City on Tuesday.

“This campaign not only highlights the importance of digestive health but also underscores Manulife’s dedication to protecting and enhancing the quality of life for Vietnamese people,” she said. 

Nguyễn Hữu Tú, Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Young Doctors Association, spoke at the event. — Photo courtesy of Manulife Vietnam

Nguyễn Hữu Tú, Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Young Doctors Association, said: “The infection rate of HP in Việt Nam is alarming, yet there is a lack of effective communication campaigns to raise public awareness about the dangers of this bacterium.”

“We highly commend Manulife Vietnam’s initiative and the practical value they aim to bring to the community through this campaign. We are delighted to partner with Manulife. We believe that through the free health checks and HP screenings, public awareness about digestive disease prevention, particularly stomach cancer, will be significantly improved,” he said. 

For his part, Ngô Trung Dũng, Deputy General Secretary of the Vietnam Insurance Association, said that Manulife Vietnam’s continuous innovation efforts, ranging from customer service enhancements and sales process improvements to insurance product initiatives, have actively contributed to the growth of the insurance industry and strengthened customer trust.

“The ‘Living Clean-Smart-Green’ CSR campaign is another significant step forward, demonstrating Manulife’s commitment to raising awareness and improving community health,” he said. 

At the event, Dũng also shared insights into the Vietnamese life insurance market and its recent developments.

According to data from the Vietnam Insurance Association, in the first six months of 2024, the total assets of the life insurance industry reached an estimated VNĐ819.56 trillion, marking a 9.6 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2023.

Total investment was estimated at over VNĐ721.28 trillion, reflecting a yearly rise of 10 per cent. Total reserves hit over VNĐ600 trillion, up 13.2 per cent year-on-year.

During the period, the total owners’ equity of life insurance businesses was estimated to reach above VNĐ159.88 trillion, an increase of 7.4 per cent year-on-year.

Notably, total insurance benefit payments topped VNĐ30.96 trillion, a significant 35 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2023. For Manulife Vietnam alone, total claim payments in the first half of 2024 amounted to over VNĐ3.8 trillion.

Previously, to mark 25 years of protecting Vietnamese people, Manulife Vietnam launched a customer appreciation programme called ‘Manulife-25 years: better together with Việt Nam,’ offering exciting gifts to their customers.

With a focus on continual development and innovation, Manulife Vietnam has implemented numerous initiatives since the beginning of 2024 to enhance transparency and professionalism in the life insurance industry.

These initiatives include the implementation of the sales verification and supervision process M-Pro, sale illustration public tool, new policy kit, and M-PA application for agents.

Improving call centre services, shortening TAT for the claims process to 1.6 days, upgrading transaction offices to the green standards, and launching the Manulife Vietnam application are also included. 

Looking ahead, Manulife is committed to further innovation by introducing an anytime, anywhere Customer Support Service and the Medallia Customer Feedback (tNPS) system. — VNS