Yemisi Izuora
In a bid to enhance the acceptance of insurance in Nigeria, the President of the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), Mr. Shola Tinubu, has addressed the Course 39 set of the Nigerian Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru, where he underscored the need for government to make agricultural insurance compulsory in the country.
According to the NCRIB President, the quest by government to reflate national economy and put the nation on sustainable path of economic vibrancy has necessitated the need for government to makeagriculturalinsurances compulsory, as a pre-condition for facilities, subsidies and other Government support.
Mr Tinubu, who applauded the progressive moves by government to diversify the economy to from oil to non-oil, averred that “in order to increase insurance penetration in a geometric proportion, there should be concentration on the Agric sector in terms of marketing the intrinsic value of the Insurance products to farmers and other Agricultural and Agro allied sectors”
Similarly, the NCRIB President highlighted the need for government to embrace insurance in its efforts to take prudent economic strides, considering the scarce resources and tight budget of government, make it less likely toeasily replace assets in the event of loss.
He opined that it was time for government across the levels to transfer their risks to the insurance market and free funds for other developmental projects, noting that the time was ripe for government to issue directives to ensure that all its assets are insured through licenced Insurance Brokers, with risks premiums provided for in yearly budgets.
On payment of bidding fees by Insurance Brokers, the NCRIB President urged government to retool the procurement rules for Insurance Brokers, making it to be in tandem with similar professional bodies like Lawyers, Accountants, Architects, and other allied professionals.
Tinubu urged NIPSS to utilise its pivotal position to advice government on the crucial roles of Insurance Brokers in the insurance value chain and the growth of the insurance industry, which he noted was the linch pin of sustainable economic growth of progressive nations in the world.
Tinubu applauded NIPSS for retaining its prestige as the foremost leadership institution in the country, with attendance of top level policy makers and executors drawn from different sectors of the economy, with a view to widening their outlook and perspectives on issues and improving their conceptual capacity.
With the NCRIB President’s presentation, the Council has joined the league of notable professional bodies and functionaries, such as the Central Bank Governor; the Service Chiefs; Inspector General and numerous academia who had in past added value to policy conception and advocacy roles of the Institute.
Earlier, the Acting Director General of the Institute, Mr Jonathan Juma, advised the insurance industry to create more awareness about the value of insurance to national economy and be ingenious in creation of valued products that would meet the needs of the people.
He opined that from comparative studies, insurance industry is the main catalyst of economic growth in most advanced climes visited by the institute and there was no basis why Nigeria could not witness the same development if the industry positioned itself positively for desired growth and profitability.