The Federal Government’s ministries, divisions, and agencies (MDAs) may be required to adopt insurance coverage for all FG assets under a new directive that the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) may issue.
MDAs did not previously support the industry. However, underwriters are urging the federal and state governments to get suitable insurance agreements to safeguard national infrastructure.
The experts claimed that the #EndSARS experience should serve as a lesson to other government entities. They seemed concerned by the government’s apparent laziness and refusal to insure public assets.
In light of the extensive destruction of public property during the demonstration, the stakeholders who spoke at an industry event thought that both NAICOM and the practitioner groups had exerted pressure on the government.
They claimed that as a result, the experience ought to motivate the government to ensure that all of its assets are covered.
Rasaaq Salami, the head of NAICOM’s Corporate Communications and Market Development Department, spoke at a nationwide workshop on microinsurance that Safe Sapphire Foundation and the industry’s regulator jointly organized in Abuja. Salami emphasized the importance of insurance in risk management.
Salami said: “We think the insurance companies would pay the necessary claims to them if the destroyed homes were insured.”
In order to achieve this goal and increase the penetration and profitability of the insurance industry, the Commission disclosed that it is developing regulations that would guarantee that all assets owned by the Federal Government are insured.
The guidelines, which are being developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, will soon be made public, according to Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) Deputy Commissioner, Technical, Sabiu Abubakar, who spoke at the Second Edition of 2022 Business Outlook Seminar in Lagos.
He insisted that the rules would assist to end the dishonest behavior that MDAs and insurance agents engage in.
He emphasized that the regulations would also impose suitable penalties on violators.
Abubakar pointed out that the recommendations only apply to national assets and said NAICOM is attempting to persuade state governments to domesticate the proposed law so that the market might offer sufficient insurance coverage for state-owned assets.
He said that NAICOM has improved its regulatory oversight and urged operators to resolve valid claims quickly.
