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By Henry Uche
The Managing Director/CEO, Heirs Life Assurance (HLA) Mr. Niyi Onifade, has called for a deliberate and urgent effort towards grooming the next generation of insurance professionals to transform the industry and meet its future needs According to him, the need for insurance services towards individuals and corporate bodies in the nearest future would inevitably surge and taxing, but how prepared the industry is to face the envisaged and emerging challenge is worrying industry experts in Nigeria.
The Heirs Life boss made this stance recently during the 2022 induction and awards ceremony of Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) held at the College of Insurance Financial Management (CIFM) in Ogun State, where he delivered a keynote address.
Onifade who joined other dignitaries at the auspicious ceremony to celebrate over 150 newly inducted chartered insurance professionals, maintained that if nothing was done now by way of preparation for the future challenges awaiting the insurance industry, it would not be funny as the business world is already overwhelmed with unprecedented risks and uncertainties.
Speaking on the topic, “The Professional: Key Player to a Sustainable Insurance Industry”, Onifade congratulated the new inductees and awardees, but charged them never to loose sight of the significant role insurance professionals play in sustaining the economy.
According to him, “The insurance professional is one of the most essential professionals in the context of the global economy. We play a key role in sustaining the economy by protecting the means of livelihood of millions of people – both in terms of lives and possessions”. He charged the inductees to be good ambassadors of the profession by upholding the code of ethics and acting with the highest professional standards and integrity. He added that the new status comes with certain responsibilities and expectations, imploring them to adhere to relevant laws and regulations governing the affairs of the industry.
Speaking on transformation, Onifade made a case for a joint vision statement by the insurance industry. According to him, underwriters need to do more to encourage Nigerians to adopt insurance as a lifestyle.
He said, “I would like to advocate for the adoption of a common Vision Statement for our industry. I recommend an industry Vision Statement that reads like this: “To make insurance a lifestyle in Nigeria.” This should be adopted by all our industry players – insurance companies, brokers, loss adjusters etc. When insurance becomes a lifestyle, every Nigerian would remember to add insurance premium to his budget list.”
He urged the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), the CIIN, and industry bodies such as the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) and National Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), to keep the ball rolling towards deepening insurance penetration in the country in the interest of Nigerians and their businesses.
“We are very proud of the great work that the Commissioner for Insurance, Mr. O. S. Thomas, and his team are doing to change the face of our industry. Industry bodies are also doing well in this respect, but so much remains to be done. We need to do more, and we can do more, as an industry,” he maintained.
