By Rukayat Adeyemi
Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) on Tuesday said that the volume of premium recorded by its member companies in 2022 grew to about N726.2 billion.
NIA’s Chairman, Mr Olusegun Omosehin said this while delivering an address at the 52nd Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the association in Lagos.
Omosehin said that the figure recorded is estimated to be an increase of 33.9 per cent over the premium income of N569.1 billion recorded in 2021.
He said, despite the economic downtown in the country, the insurance industry continues to take its place in the economic space as the economic driver, restorer of businesses and a dependable safeguard of national assets.
“As a subset of the national financial system, the insurance industry also had a fair dose of the general economic and socio-political problems bedeviling the country in the past one year.
“Perennial power outages, herders and farmers conflicts, kidnapping, banditry poor infrastructural facilities, increasing poverty galloping inflation, flooding and other natural catastrophes.
“Also, geometric rise in exchange rate of the business resulting in high cost of operations.
“Notwithstanding these challenges, insurance companies continue to discharge their obligations as financial intermediators and restorer of businesses in line with their mandate,” he said.
According to him, the association is working closely with the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and other stakeholders within the financial services and technology segments to promote the business of insurance.
Omosehin said the collaboration was geared toward increasing the sector’s contribution to the national Gross Domestic Products (GDP), which will lead to increase insurance penetration and density.
He expressed regret that the Consolidated Insurance Bill 2020 was not signed into law during the 9th Assembly, despite the spirited effort made by the association to ensure that it was.
Omosehin appreciated NIA Governing Council members and past chairmen who worked tirelessly to ensure that the bill was signed.
He noted that the governing council would review the process that had brought the bill that far and take the next steps in the coming months after due consultation with all relevant stakeholders.
Omosehin commended the significant progress made by the Energy and Allied Insurance Pool of Nigeria (EAIPN), conceived by the NIA, to build local capacity and reduce premium flight in oil and gas underwriting.
He charged the general business insurance companies to increase their patronage to the pool to improve the capacity of the local market to underwrite oil and gas risk through the pool.
In her address, Mrs Yetunde Ilori, Director-General, NIA, said that in the course of the year under review, the association collaborated on a joint project with the Lagos State Vehicle Inspection Service (VIS).
Ilori said the collaboration is on enforcement and validation of genuine compulsory motor third party insurance.
She said this was made mandatory by extant laws through the Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) device of VIS and the Nigerian Insurance Industry Database (NIID), verification platform of NIA.
The director-general appreciated the Commissioner for Insurance, Mr Sunday Thomas, Heads of companies in the industry, various associations and stakeholders for their support toward NIA.
According to him, this will further grow the industry.
Mr Austin Ebose, Managing Director, Anchor Insurance Company Ltd., and Mrs Ebelechukwu Nwachukwu, Managing Director, Royal Exchange Assurance Nigeria Ltd., were inaugurated as governing council members of association.
The NIA’s governing council said that their swearing-in followed an election and ratification by its members.
Stakeholders at the AGM included: representatives from NAICOM, Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN), Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), Institute of Loss Adjusters of Nigeria, Association of Registered Insurance Agents of Nigeria (ARIAN), among others.
