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Nigeria’s insurance industry must strengthen its financial capacity, adopt advanced technology, improve claims settlement, and rebuild public trust if it is to play a more significant role in supporting the country’s economic transformation, the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and industry stakeholders have said.
The stakeholders made the call on Thursday at the 2026 Insurance Professional Forum of the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN), held in Abeokuta, Ogun State, under the theme, “The Economics of Risk: Sustaining a Resilient Insurance Industry.”
The Commissioner for Insurance and Chief Executive Officer of NAICOM, Olusegun Omosehin, described insurance as more than a financial service, saying it represents critical infrastructure for economic development, stability, and resilience.
According to Omosehin, the industry has entered a new phase following recent regulatory reforms, with greater emphasis now being placed on financial soundness, corporate governance, policyholder protection, and professional standards.
Insurers must prepare for emerging risks
Omosehin said the evolving risk environment, marked by economic volatility, climate-related disasters, technological disruption, cyber threats, geopolitical uncertainty, and changing consumer expectations, requires insurers to move beyond conventional risk management methods.
He urged operators to deploy predictive analytics, enterprise risk management, scenario modelling, climate intelligence, and other advanced tools to improve their capacity to anticipate and withstand shocks.
The commissioner also clarified that the industry’s recapitalisation exercise was not merely intended to expand insurers’ balance sheets. Rather, it is designed to create stronger institutions capable of retaining larger risks, investing in technology and human capital, underwriting major national projects, and meeting obligations during periods of economic pressure.
He said the success of the exercise would ultimately be determined by the resilience of insurance companies and the confidence of policyholders.
“Insurance is a promise,” Omosehin said, stressing that valid claims must be processed promptly, fairly, and transparently.
He identified public trust as the sector’s most important asset, warning that capital, technology, and regulation could not replace confidence in insurers.
Policyholder protection and professional development
Omosehin disclosed that NAICOM had introduced a Policyholder Protection Fund, supported by industry operators, to provide an additional layer of protection in cases of institutional failure.
However, he cautioned that the fund must not become a justification for insurers to disregard their responsibilities to policyholders.
The NAICOM chief also called on insurance professionals to continuously improve their skills as artificial intelligence, machine learning, predictive analytics, and digital platforms reshape underwriting, claims administration, customer engagement, and risk assessment.
He further advocated stronger cooperation among insurers, reinsurers, brokers, government institutions, technology providers, professional associations, academic institutions, and consumers.
In his welcome address, Akinjide Orimolade, President and Chairman of the Council of CIIN, said the forum offered professionals an opportunity to examine practical measures for improving the resilience and long-term sustainability of the insurance industry.
Orimolade said risk remains central to every economic activity, making insurance an important enabler of growth, business continuity, and social stability.
He noted that technological innovation, data-driven decision-making, new insurance products, and improved customer service would be essential to expanding insurance penetration. He also highlighted professional ethics, transparency, integrity, and continuous development as critical to restoring public confidence.
Insurance critical to protecting economic value
Speaking on the forum’s theme, Kola Adesina, Managing Director of Sahara Power Group, said Nigeria could not achieve sustainable economic growth without stronger mechanisms for managing risk.
Adesina said entrepreneurs, farmers, banks, and companies investing in new ventures are all exposed to uncertainty. The objective, he explained, should not be to eliminate risk but to ensure that adverse events do not permanently destroy economic value.
He said insurance supports this process by pooling risks, transferring financial exposure, and helping individuals and businesses recover from unexpected losses.
Using fire incidents as an example, Adesina noted that the impact of a disaster goes beyond the immediate destruction of physical assets. The loss of a business can lead to job losses, impaired bank loans, lower government revenue, reduced household consumption, and the permanent loss of productive capacity.
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