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By Henry Uche
Nigeria’s actuarial profession has received a major boost on the global stage as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Milliman intensify efforts to strengthen local capacity, deepen technical expertise, and align the country’s actuarial practice with global best standards. A statement from Ajoke Adeyemi, Head, Corporate Communications/Brand Management of the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA), confirmed this development.
Put together by the NIA, the one day free capacity building training for insurers held at the Insurers House in Lagos, is expected to enhance risk management, insurance sustainability, insurance administration, and financial stability across key sectors of the Nigerian economy.
Under the Global Actuarial Initiative in Nigeria (GAIN) for human resources practitioners, within the framework of the UNDP’s Insurance and Risk Finance Facility (IRFF), the session engaged key stakeholders like senior managers involved in actuarial recruitment and executive leadership of NIA, on strategies for strengthening actuarial capacity within the insurance industry.
In an address, the Chairman of NIA, Mr Kunle Ahmed, represented by the Director-General of NIA, Mrs Bola Odukale, appreciated the efforts of UNDP and Milliman for organizing the workshop since last year. Ahmed assured that NIA is committed to building the capacity of local actuaries and would continue to drive it with partners for the growth of the industry.
The Chairman admitted that it is expensive to train Actuaries but urged insurance companies to commit to supporting the development of Actuaries in terms of cost and training. He urged the participants to contribute meaningfully to the dialogue, adding that it was an opportunity to build a robust pipeline of actuarial professionals in Nigeria.
On his part, Mr. Ikenna Orji, Programmes Specialist, UNDP, appreciated the NIA for making it seamless to connect with the insurers, noting that the project is dedicated to insurance awareness. “I thank the NIA, especially because we can not access the insurance practitioners as a group without the support of the NIA.
“The low insurance penetration in Nigeria poses a developmental challenge, hence the UNDP intervention to dedicate this programme for insurance awareness by partnering the NIA and Milliman to develop the actuarial aspect of insurance expertise in Nigeria,” Orji said.
Mr. Adrian Allott, Facilitator, Milliman GAIN, revealed that Milliman is working with countries across the world to strengthen their actuarial capacity. He noted that Milliman is on a mission to help Nigeria insurers develop their actuarial team to strengthen their prudential management and improve their understanding of risk and balance sheet. No fewer than 35 NIA member companies’ representatives attended the workshop.
