Europe is in the most transitional period since the Second World War. This was stated by European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic in his opening speech at the Ferma 2022 Forum.
Referring to the hybrid Ferma conference a year ago, he said there was already a sense that life had become very unusual as Europe emerged from the pandemic lockdowns of the previous two years, but that was ” long before February 24, 2022″.
Today, in the context of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the challenges have increased even further. “We are now in a new world, when war has returned to the European continent,” he said.
Sefcovic explained that part of his role is to lead the European Commission’s horizon scanning exercises.
“We are in an increasingly uncertain world,” he told delegates. “In the Commission, we try to identify risks and prepare for the next shock or crisis that comes our way.”
Supply Chains: Learning the Lessons
Geopolitical unrest in Ukraine affects the whole of Europe, he explained, and has accelerated the need to tackle many megatrends, including climate transition.
With supply chains in constant turmoil, there is a need to learn from recent disruptive events and ensure access to the components and raw materials needed to enable economies to successfully transition to Net Zero.
“The EU is highly dependent on the supply of essential raw materials that will be needed for our green and digital transformation,” Sefcovic said. “And we need a new approach.”
Lithium supply will need to increase by 3,500% by 2030 alone, he said, adding that previous forecasts of needing 600-650 billion euros to fuel the green transition were now likely to increase. be even more dramatic, given the impact of war and inflation.
Delivering on governments’ commitments will require a fusion of “two revolutions” on the digital and green agenda, he thought.
Risk and insurance professionals have a critical role to play, Sefcovic concluded in measuring, managing and reimbursing losses associated with this transition.