Objective: The National Quality Assurance Framework (NQAF), developed by the United Nations, provides a systematic framework for assessing and improving the quality of official statistics across four areas: statistical system management, institutional environment management, statistical process management, and statistical output management. Given the strategic role of official life insurance statistics in economic, social, and welfare analyses, and impact on policymaking and industry regulation, the quality of statistical reports is vital. However, in Iran’s insurance industry, no context-specific and coherent framework has yet been developed for assessing the quality of such reports based on international standards. Accordingly, this study aims to identify quality challenges in official life insurance statistical reports and develop a context-specific framework for their improvement based on NQAF principles.



Methodology: This study is applied and descriptive-analytical, using an exploratory mixed-methods approach in four stages. In the first stage, official statistical reports and documents concerning life insurance were reviewed. In the second stage, quality challenges were identified through expert focus groups and analyzed using thematic analysis. The third stage involved mapping the identified challenges against the principles of the NQAF and designing localized indicators. Finally, in the fourth stage, the proposed checklist was validated through expert evaluation, practical testing on statistical yearbooks, and a pilot implementation within an insurance company.



Findings: Major quality challenges include insufficient disaggregation of certain statistical items, potential discrepancies between yearbook data and financial statements, inadequate standardization of definitions and metadata, the absence of systematic mechanisms for validating input data, limited transparency and accessibility of information, and weaknesses in online reporting infrastructure. Accordingly, a set of indicators and improvement actions was developed in two areas: statistical system management and statistical output management. Contextualizing the NQAF framework for life insurance statistics can provide an operational basis for improving the accuracy, consistency, transparency, reliability, and efficiency of official statistics. The proposed checklist can serve as a practical tool for regulatory authorities, statistical data producers, and policymakers, improving decision-making and the insurance industry’s statistical system.



Originality/Scientific Value: Accordingly, the added value of the present study lies in moving from the general level of the NQAF to the specific domain of life insurance, in designing and preliminarily validating an operational 45-indicator checklist, and in linking the specialized and regulatory requirements of life insurance to statistical quality principles. This framework can provide a basis for the systematic assessment of the quality of life insurance statistical reports in Iran.