Risk Management Association of Nigeria (RIMAN) is collaborating with Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) to advance best practices in risk management.
This is coming as AMCON has applauded RIMAN for the consistent efforts in promoting risk management capacity building in Nigeria.
Ahmed Kuru, managing director/Chief Executive Officer of AMCON gave this commendation when he played host to the Leadership Team of RIMAN in a stakeholder’s interaction at AMCON’s office in Marina, Lagos recently.
He pointed out that the activities of RIMAN are essential to the operations of AMCON, especially as it relates to credit risks. He re-instated the importance of risk management and noted that of at least 14,000 bad credits that were transferred to AMCON at inception about 70 percent of them went bad at the various banks because of lack of adherence to laid down credit process and policies, which was a reflection of poor risk management.
The remaining 30 percent he noted could be related to other reasons like macroeconomic issues and environmental factors.
Kuru also stated that the country as a whole has lost more money in bad credits than people stealing money. He recommended that a stick and carrot approach should be adopted in dealing with these issues, while Operators should be held accountable. He emphasized that it is necessary to re-visit the failed bank Act as part of instilling consequence management practices. He reiterated that it is imperative to do this because abuse of internal credit policies for self-interest is indeed another form of corruption and must be treated as such. Credit policy documents must not just be seen as a routine document for compliance purposes only, but must be seen for what it truly is, Kuru said.
The President of RIMAN, Magnus Nnoka, (CRM) also noted that RIMAN as the umbrella body of risk management professionals in Nigeria has over the years collaborated with institutions like CBN and NDIC and will in the same way collaborate with AMCON to enthrone strong risk culture and corporate governance in both private and public institutions. Nnoka went on to say that collaboration with AMCON is desirable to enable the two bodies work together in promoting risk management advocacy, capacity building and best practice risk management in the country required to stem events that led to creation of AMCON about a decade ago.
Nnoka further remarked that with the commencement of Certified Risk Manager (CRM) professional certification programme by RIMAN in collaboration with The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), RIMAN is poised to take risk management capacity building to the next level. Also, with the establishment of RIMAN Risk Management Institute and the introduction of PGD programme in Risk Management in partnership with UNILAG, RIMAN is well positioned to achieve much more.
Nnoka formally invited AMCON to join RIMAN’s Non-Performing Loans (NPL) Work Group set up by RIMAN towards strengthening laws relating to credit administration, risk management and debt recovery within the Nigeria business environment and recommend necessary reforms.
While applauding RIMAN for the good work done over the years in the space of risk management in Nigeria, Kuru, reiterated the readiness and willingness of AMCON to collaborate with RIMAN in advancing the cause of Risk Management, especially in the area of financial risk.
