Nigeria: AXA Mansard launches pan-African ‘Culture of Care’ campaign to deepen insurance protection

AXA Mansard has launched its first pan-African brand campaign in Nigeria, introducing a new initiative, ‘Culture of Care,’ designed to promote community support and protection while encouraging greater awareness of formal financial protection solutions.

The campaign celebrates everyday caregivers across Africa and seeks to position empathy, mutual support and responsibility as foundations for broader insurance adoption.

Speaking virtually at the campaign unveiling in Lagos on Wednesday, AXA Mansard Chief Marketing Officer, Adebola Surakat, said the initiative aligns with the company’s objective of deepening insurance penetration in Nigeria.

“First off, I’d like to begin with our purpose at AXA: it is to act for human progress by protecting what matters. And today, what matters to us is how we care for one another,” Surakat said.

She noted that behind resilient families and communities are individuals who provide support, often without formal recognition or financial protection.

Building on Africa’s culture of care

According to Surakat, informal systems of support have historically played an important role in sustaining Nigerian communities through family sacrifices, community solidarity and traditional financial arrangements.

She cited examples ranging from parents supporting their children and teachers guiding students to healthcare workers serving communities, firstborn children taking on additional family responsibilities, and neighbours and friends providing assistance during difficult periods.

Surakat also highlighted traditional savings and contribution systems such as Ajo and Esusu, which have enabled communities to pool resources and meet significant financial needs.

“For generations, this culture of care has been one of Nigeria’s greatest strengths,” she said, describing these informal networks as longstanding mechanisms through which people have supported one another.

AXA Mansard targets broader understanding of protection

AXA Mansard Chief Executive Officer, Kunle Ahmed, said the campaign represents an effort to expand the conversation around protection beyond conventional insurance products.

He described the initiative as a movement built around the question of who supports those who consistently provide care to others.

“That is why today, we are proud to not just be launching this campaign, but launching a movement – a movement inspired by one simple yet powerful question: Who takes care of the caregiver?” Ahmed said.

According to him, the campaign is intended to promote protection as a broader social concept and encourage stronger support systems for families and communities.

“This campaign reflects our ambition to go beyond insurance and champion protection in its most human form. When we bring back the culture of care, we build stronger families, stronger communities, and ultimately, a stronger Nigeria,” he added.

Insurance adoption remains a key challenge

The campaign also seeks to address public perceptions around insurance and encourage Nigerians to view financial protection as part of everyday risk management.

The Chief Executive Officer of AXA Mansard Health, Tope Adeniyi, said the initiative was designed to stimulate a wider conversation about human-centred protection.

“Today, we are not just launching a campaign; we are igniting a national conversation,” Adeniyi said.

He argued that protection begins with people and relationships before extending to formal financial products.

“Protection does not begin with an insurance policy; protection begins with people,” he said.

Adeniyi pointed to Nigeria’s relatively low insurance penetration, excluding pensions, noting that it has remained below 1% of GDP compared with the global average.

He said one of the industry’s challenges is helping Nigerians understand insurance as a practical tool for expressing care and protecting households, businesses and communities rather than viewing it solely as an expense.

Insurance reforms create new industry expectations

Adeniyi also linked the campaign to changes taking place within Nigeria’s insurance industry, particularly following the passage of the Insurance Industry Reform Act 2025 and the sector’s ongoing recapitalisation programme.

He said recapitalisation should extend beyond increasing the amount of capital available to insurers, with the broader objective of creating stronger and more resilient institutions.

According to him, stronger insurers should be better positioned to underwrite larger risks, settle claims more efficiently, expand access to insurance and contribute to national economic priorities.

The campaign therefore comes amid efforts to improve both the capacity of insurance companies and public participation in formal risk protection.

Adeniyi said a sustained emphasis on mutual protection could also reinforce Nigeria’s social and economic relationships.

“Every day, Nigeria will be better as we improve and continue to celebrate the culture of care, from the home to the workplace, to industry, and beyond,” he said.

He added that the social fabric of Nigerian society continues to depend on people caring for one another, making greater awareness and understanding of that culture central to the initiative.