Determined to increase sector contribution to economy, players in the insurance industry have engaged federal lawmakers to drive policies that will strengthen regulation and participation in government economic programmes.
The players under the umbrella body the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB) and the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) in a recent interactive session with the House Committee on Insurance and Actuarial Matters focused on how insurance can be grown to support the economy.
Like Olusegun Omosehin, the commissioner for Insurance said, the risk management industry is focused on supporting government’s efforts to achieving its one trillion dollar economy.
The 2-day retreat held in Lagos, brought together key stakeholders in the insurance industry and members of the House Committee, to discuss ways of deepening the sector and addressing pressing issues.
Ahmadu Usman Jaha, chairman of the House Committee on Insurance and Actuarial Matters, expressed gratitude to the organizers for the initiative, stating that the session had greatly enhanced the committee’s understanding of insurance matters.
“We are committed to supporting the growth of the insurance industry in Nigeria, and this interactive session has provided us with valuable insights into the sector,” he said.
Babatunde Oguntade, president of NCRIB, Prince commended the House Committee for their unparalleled oversight functions and willingness to transform, learn and engage with stakeholders.
“We believe that this collaboration will lead to better policies and regulations that will promote the development of the insurance industry in Nigeria,” he said.
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Kunle Ahmed, chairman of the NIA said the event marked a significant step forward in promoting understanding and collaboration between insurance stakeholders and lawmakers in Nigeria. As the industry continues to evolve, such initiatives will be crucial in addressing emerging challenges and opportunities.
Omosehin has said during an interactive session with journalist that the future of the Nigerian insurance sector and that of NAICOM is brighter now than ever.
Omosehin who is also advocating the need for insurance to be embedded in the nation’s life, said since his resumption of duties as the CEO of the regulatory organ of the nation’s insurance industry, a lot has been done to reposition the nation’s insurance sector for effectiveness and NAICOM to become more responsive to the market.
While emphasising the importance of insurance in protecting other sectors of the economy, he highlighted the mandate of the Commission, which he said is to regulate, supervise and ensure the sector’s development.
He reiterated the readiness of his administration to do everything within its powers to take the industry to lofty heights.
Speaking on what the Commission under his leadership has done in the past three months, Omosehin said that the Commission has already fashioned out strategies and initiatives to reposition the industry and engender sustainable growth in the country.
According to him, I would like to say the future of the sector and that of the Commission is brighter now than ever, this is because you can see the way the Nigerian economy has moved in the last one year, a lot has happened, and that has also brought to bear the need for adequate protection, whether you are in manufacturing, whether you are in services, whether you are in business, whatever sector you operate.
“Continuously, the need for insurance to be embedded in the national life of our nation has become more and more important, Omosehin said.
“What we have done since we came on board in the last three months, was to put together a vision that has a basis, has a background, by looking at what we have done over the years as a Commission.
“Interestingly, we discovered that the industry last year came up with a ten-year strategic roadmap that articulated the progress we want to see as an industry and in doing that the number of initiatives was mapped out, some of them have a direct bearing as to the execution, revolving on NAICOM. So, we took all of these, and then looked at the kind of ambition we have and how we want to grow the industry,” the NAICOM boss explained.
Speaking further, he said, “The last three months have been very instructive, because as an industry, we have to do a whole lot, in terms of putting a new direction and sharing this with the market.
“We started May 3, 2024, officially even though our appointment was announced on April 19, 2024, and one of the key things we did was to put our thoughts together on how to champion a plan for the Commission.
“We commenced some of our initial field works by looking internally, to see what we have on the ground after which we started our engagement with the entire market, which involved having meetings with various sections of major key stakeholders in the industry.
“We met with the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA); we met with the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), we met with the Institute of Loss Adjusters of Nigeria (ILAN); we met with the Legislators, particularly those that are saddled with oversight functions about insurance and actuarial matters and we met with some consumer groups.
All these engagements came in very handy in ultimately fashioning the blueprint of what I called our strategic priorities, Omosehin said.
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