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•Experts call for boost in local reinsurance market
From Henry Uche, Kigali
African chief executives have been urged to deploy their influence more deliberately toward driving people-centred development across the continent.
This comes as experts call for a shift in corporate priorities to include broader social and economic impact.
At the same time, stakeholders are pressing for stronger local reinsurance capacity, arguing that a more resilient insurance and risk management ecosystem is critical to unlocking regional investment, stabilising economies and supporting long-term growth across Africa’s rapidly evolving financial landscape.
These formed the condensed perspectives of stakeholders at the ongoing 11th CEO Summit and Continental Reinsurance Awards for Africa, with the theme, “From Risk to Renaissance”, in Kigali, Rwanda.
Speaking at the event, the former Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Kenya Airways, Mr. Allan Kilavuka, urged corporate czars to take their responsibilities very seriously and ensure that every decision making process is centered in value addition.
At the summit, experts called for urgent efforts to strengthen the capacity of Africa’s local reinsurance sector, saying it is very critical to unlocking sustainable growth, development and accelerating economic transformation across the region.
They stressed that a more resilient reinsurance market would help retain capital within local economies, boost investor confidence, and support broader development goals.
According to them, deepening local reinsurance capacity would reduce dependence on foreign markets, improve risk absorption, and enhance the sector’s ability to support key industries such as infrastructure, agriculture, and energy. They noted that a stronger domestic reinsurance ecosystem would also create jobs, spur innovation, and position African economies for greater long-term stability.
Kilavuka, a leadership expert, highlighted the need for corporate leaders to show the much needed resilience and persistence to transform the African continent.
He noted that every African country needs a minimum of fifty (50) healthy National Carriers if they must remain resilient and sustainable.
“For African economic transformation and development to be really felt by the people, we need to consolidate African carriers.
“Africa is deficient in infrastructure and other structures, but we need to get connected with one another. I faced challenges, but then there were great expectations, so I must deliver. I’m conscious of how my position affects the people. CEOs think they have solutions to every question, but I can tell you, you don’t have every answer to every question. So as leaders, since we can’t solve all our people’s problems, we should lessen them.
“To the leaders, we should externalise our views and maximize your position for the betterment of your people” he added.
During a panel session, insurance regulators from Zimbabwe, Ghana, Kenya and Rwanda, advised other African regulators to carry young people along to make the industry sustainable in the future.
According to them, young people should be fully instilled with the knowledge of insurance just even much more than they know about banking and having a bank account.
“We need people who will talk about insurance in the future when we shall no longer be talking, the knowledge impartation on young people should have started yesterday” , the said unanimously.
They called on African Head of States to consciously look into their farmers and support them with all requisite insurance cover if they must have food security for their people.
They advocated for more power to be given to the industry regulators to enable them take certain decisions that affect the sector, without reverting to some higher authorities, as such may cause undesirable outcomes. Panelists also called on African leaders to strengthen their local reinsurance sector to enable them to bear any risk and threats emanating from different quarters of the world.
“The business environment is becoming more complex, ambiguous, volatile and uncertain. So we need our institutions to be stronger, resilient and future -proof for any eventuality”, they noted.
