NIA: Increase in FDI, Economic Challenges Opportunities for Insurance Sector

Ebere Nwoji

The newly elected Chairman of the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA), Kunle Ahmed, has said the increase in foreign Direct Investment (FDI) coming to insurance industry, especially in Q1 2024 and the various economic challenges plaguing Nigeria, have presented insurance industry with unique opportunities for growth and innovation.

Ahmed stated this during his media unveiling and maiden press briefing as the 26th Chairman of NIA at the Insurers’ House in Lagos, recently.

Speaking at the unveiling, Ahmed said: “The current landscape of insurance as we navigate a complex socio-economic environment in our country today, coupled with the recent increase in Foreign Direct Investment, which reached $3.3 million in Q1 2024, signal a renewed interest in our market. This is a moment for us to harness this momentum and reshape our industry for the future.”

According to him, insurance is one of the solutions that can be deployed to confront some of these challenges. Globally, insurance has proven to be a powerful tool for stabilising economies, protecting investments, and providing the financial resilience that allows societies to thrive. He however, said in Nigeria, depending on source of data, insurance penetration has remained strikingly low. 

“We currently lag far behind African and global averages despite being one of the continent’s largest economies,” he said.

Ahmed promised that as the 26th Chairman of NIA, his strategic focus would be  to turn the challenges into opportunities for the growth of insurance industry and the prosperity of the nation.

He said his administration would focus strategically on five key areas, which he listed to include: Customer-centricity adding that enhancing customer satisfaction will be his priority. 

He said this would involve driving programmes, initiatives, and policies to simplify the insurance on-boarding process, improve claims handling, and ensure transparency in operations.