Yemisi Izuora
The National Insurance Commission, NAICOM, has put insurance firms on notice that from June 1 this year, the implementation of new corporate governance guidelines for the insurance industry will begin.
The Commission which confirmed the development in notice issued on its website, advised companies not to contravene or violate the guidelines as there are sanctions attached to it.
It implored all insurance and reinsurance firms to comply with the guidelines along with the Nigerian Code of Corporate Governance 2018.
The Commission explained that the principal objective of the new guidelines was to ensure effective administration, supervision, regulation and control of the insurance business in Nigeria.
It added that Section 11 C and 51 C of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria Act, 2011 confers on the FRCN the power to ensure good corporate governance practices in public and private sectors of the Nigerian economy.
Failure to comply with the Nigerian Code of Corporate Governance 2018 and new guidelines from June 1 is a violation of Section 49(1) b of the National Insurance Commission Act 1997 and attracts penalty under Section 49(5) of the Act.
The Commission stated that the FRCN issued the Nigerian Code of Corporate Governance 2018 to institutionalise corporate governance best practices in all Companies in Nigeria and repealed all other sectoral codes.
“Therefore, the NAICOM in the exercise of its powers under the National Insurance Commission Act 1997 and in collaboration with FRCN hereby issues its corporate governance guidelines to assist the implementation of the NCCG 2018,” it added.
The guidelines according to NAICOM would be read and interpreted in conjunction with the provision of NCCG 2018 and replaces the NAICOM Code of Good Corporate Governance for the Insurance Industry 2009; and all insurance and reinsurance companies are to comply with it and the Nigerian Code of Corporate Governance 2018.