AMRAE president Gilbert Canameras today welcomed 2,200 delegates to the 21st ‘Rencontres’.

Crowds at AMRAE

Expressing delight to be in Lyon, which was not only the capital of the Gauls and the capital of gastronomy, but over the next three days will be the capital of insurance and risk management, Canameras introduced the theme of the conference: ‘Growth and risk management’.

Risk management, he said, was not incompatible with growth. On the contrary, it was a necessary companion to growth, he added. When a business grows it takes on risk, and if it doesn’t take risks, it misses opportunities.

Canameras said it was not the job of the risk manager to hinder an enterprise, but to help pilot it forward through what may be dangerous waters, especially during one of the gravest economic crises of modern times.

In a gesture to the many insurers and brokers present, Canameras suggested that there was not much difference between insurers and risk managers, since both have the same aim: to help an enterprise achieve its goals.