Financial Inclusion: Challenges, prospects of increasing access to insurance
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By Rosemary Iwunze
In 2012, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, launched the National Financial Inclusion Strategy with the aim of increasing the number of adults that have access to financial services to 80 per cent by 2020.
To achieve this, different targets were set for each sector of the financial system. For the Insurance industry, the target was 40 per cent insurance penetration amongst the adult population by the year 2020.
According to a survey released by Enhancing Financial Innovation and Access, EFInA, in 2018 titled: “Access to Financial Services in Nigeria 2018 Survey”, out of a total adult population of 99.6 million, only about 1.6 million adults representing 1.6 per cent had any form of insurance in 2018, representing 0.1 per cent decline from 1.7 million adult population in 2016.
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The National Insurance Commission, NAICOM, has lamented the declining participation of local insurers in big ticket businesses such as aviation, annuity as well as oil and gas risks underwriting.
Opara
Insurance professionals have been urged to pay attention to reputation management as a way of growing the profession and the industry.
Vice President, Corporate Communications and CSR, Airtel Nigeria, Emeka Opara, gave this counsel during his presentation on Corporate Reputation Management at the President Breakfast Series of the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), held virtually in Lagos.
Opara noted that not many Nigerians are to the principle of insurance despite the huge potential of the industry due to poor reputation management. x
While expressing optimism about the positive results of the public awareness initiatives of the various bodies in the industry, Opara urged the engagement of a holistic corporate relations strategy.