Mr. Augustine Ebose

Managing Director/CEO

Anchor Insurance Company Limited

Anchor Insurance Company Limited has reported Gross Written Premium of N6.8 billion in the financial year ended December 31, 2020 as against N4.2 billion recorded in the same period of 2019. This represents a performance of 61 percent over the result of 2019 despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company’s Profit After Tax also recorded a 98 percent increase from N220.2 million in 2019 to N436.5 million in 2020 just as its total assets experienced an 87 percent appreciation from N7.2 billion in 2019 to N13.5 billion in 2020.

These details were disclosed by the company’s Chairman, Dr.  Elijah Akpan, during the organisation’s 31^st Annual General Meeting held virtually in Lagos.

He noted that the company responded to claims demands from its affected genuine policyholders to the tune of N1.3 billion in 2020 as against N929.6 million paid in 2019, stating that “as a tradition at Anchor Insurance Company Limited, we recognise the crucial role which regular payment of claims plays in keeping any serious insurer strong in the Nigerian insurance market.”

The Chairman told the owners of the company that the Board and Management have done well so far in pursuing the recapitalisation exercise as ordered by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM).

According to him, “based on the level we are at with the exercise, it is our strong belief that we will sail through. This feat, when achieved, will go a long way in catapulting the Company to a more vantage position where it can retain more big-ticket businesses in its port-folio than it is currently doing.”

While thanking God for seeing the company through the harsh economic weather in 2020, the Managing Director, Mr. Ebose Augustine, disclosed that the shareholders have approved the 4kobo dividend per share recommended by the Board of Directors to be paid to them.

According to him, “it is our standing practice to put smiles on the faces of the owners of the company every year for their investment in the organisation. It is our belief that when you sow, you deserve to reap.”

He assured the shareholders that “with the way business is looking up year to date, we are sure of beating our 2020 records on all indices.”

He further explained to the shareholders that “our workforce have been very wonderful. I can safely say that the ownership spirit they have continued to bring into the discharge of their duties is directly responsible for the rise of the company,” promising that “we will ensure, on our part, that appropriate rewards are extended to every deserving staff.”

 Sir Muftau Oyegunle

President/Chairman of Council

Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN)

Sir Muftau Oyegunle, the President/Chairman of Council of the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) recently outlined the journey of the Institute under his leadership in the past 12 months.

Oyegunle tells his story:

Our presence here today therefore, is to share with you some of the milestones we have crossed and the next level we are preparing for.

It is also very important that the Institute parleys with the press since we both have vital roles to play in spreading the gospel of insurance to our people. Your role in the sensitization of people on the importance of insurance and changing their perceptions and beliefs that insurance companies do not pay claims when they suffer losses is of greater importance.

Hence the need for careful reporting of insurance events knowing the impact which this may bear on the image of the insurance industry.

My first year as President of the Institute has been eventful, while a lot of inventiveness were accomplished in accordance with my agenda as the 50th President of the Institute.

The activities of the Institute and indeed the College of Insurance and Financial Management (CIFM) have been completely transformed through digitalisation in consonance with growing trends, and to remain relevant in today’s business. The Institute’s activities are being completely reengineered through computerisation and this has improved the quality of its service offerings.

• Professional Examination – The professional examination remains the pivot of all other functions of the Institute. We have maintained the sanctity of the examinations while not losing focus of the need for regular review of its machinery and curriculum. The Institute’s reviewed syllabus became operational in the April 2021 examination diet with the foundation stage while later stages would be conducted in October 2021. Despite the raging COVID-19 pandemic, we were able to successfully conduct two examination diets i.e., October 2020 and April 2021. The Institute would continue to strive hard in updating and improving both the processes and the contents of the professional examinations with integrity while ensuring global best practices are met. Professional Forum and MCPD programmes –
• The Insurance Professionals’ Forum, which is the largest gathering of insurance professionals in Nigeria since 1991 to deliberate on topical issues in the insurance industry, was successfully help last year and plans are on for 2021 edition. It also affords our members the opportunities to review activities, share ideas and expertise while also proffering solutions to operational challenges. However, there are also several activities of the Institute that members could attend to develop their skills and expertise during and after the completion of the qualifying examinations.
• These Mandatory Continuous Professional Development (MCPD) programmes, (some of which had been ceded to the College of Insurance and Financial Management) has been of great impact in the capacity building of our members in various insurance organisation.

The knowledge acquired at these educational and other programmes organised for members goes beyond those of the professional examinations but also covers topics that enable members maintain high professional standards as required in the Insurance Industry’s Code of Ethics.

There has also been a reinforcement of the relevance of Professionalism. The Institute through its professional examinations ensures that only sound individuals become insurance professionals. Furthermore, senior professionals upon retirement are being encouraged to participate in the Institute’s activities through their involvement in seminars, CIIN examination processes (i.e. setting and moderation of examination questions), lecturing at the CIFM and serving in various Committees of Council.

• CIIN Secretariat – The Institute’s administrative structure and processes are being re-energized through an on-going reorganisation in the secretariat which has led to staff redeployment in some cases. Job descriptions of Institute’s staff are being reviewed to improve service delivery while appropriate training programs have been identified and being provided.

Similarly, a staff audit exercise by Ernst & Young Professional Services is underway to ensure that the Institute is adequately staffed to meet all members’ needs, deliver on its mission and vision, while improving the quality of its service offerings. The Institute’s insurance awareness initiative has been sustained through different processes.

The tradition of enlightening secondary school students in the country about Insurance profession and practice to inspire them to select insurance as one of the subjects to be written either in Senior Secondary School and/or NECO examinations continues to record positive results.

The Institute’s insurance textbook for senior secondary schools launched some years back was recently reviewed and the new version is already being distributed. We are happy to report that over twelve thousand (12000) copies of this textbook have been distributed to various geopolitical zones of the country either through the ministry of education or directly to schools.

During the year under review, all the tertiary institutions offering insurance in Nigeria, Cameroon and Gambia that had been reaccredited by the Institute received donations of two sets of the CIIN course books to support and encourage the student members to take our examination.

In recognition of the importance of including millennials in the Institute’s activities, annual youth boot camp initiated a few years ago was held virtually while the mentoring of young professionals under the CIIN Youth Mentorship program kicked off in March 2021.

In the same vein, the maiden edition of the Institute’s Quiz Competition for Secondary Schools also took place on the 3rd of June 2021 at the University of Lagos.

• The College of Insurance and Financial Management – The Institute’s training subsidiary, the College of Insurance and Financial Management (CIFM), continues to achieve giant strides in human capital development in the insurance industry. All CIFM training programmes are now online, and this has facilitated extensive collaborations with subject experts from all over the world.

The College cutting-edge training programs for various arms of the industry also include the annual Insurance Directors Conference. The last edition held in November 2020 was a huge success while plans for the 2021 edition is on-going. The CIFM also commenced the NAICOM CAA (Certified Actuarial Analyst) Scholarship programme during the year under review.

This scholarship is open to staff of all regulated insurance entities in the industry i.e., insurance companies, broking and loss adjusting firms. 29 candidates passed the qualification assessment for the scholarship out of which 22 commenced the CAA examinations in May 2021.

We are happy to report that about 70% of our awardees passed the examinations while plans are in place to register more students for the October CAA 2021 examinations. In recognition of the standards of the College, the CIFM was appointed as the External Examiner for the Insurance Training College in Uganda, and it continues to perform this role till date. Furthermore, it is currently planning the insurance training for staff of the Petroleum Authority of Uganda (PAU).

As part of the infrastructural development of the College, its N304 million auditorium named NAICOM Hall was commissioned in March 2021. The magnificent 1500-seater edifice would host the Induction Ceremony of the Institute this year. Other Developments – Going forward, we are poised to do more at the Institute and the College therefore, the Director General and the Rector are geared to deliver optimally.

This year, there would be greater efforts towards the insurance awareness programmes and initiatives to other parts of the country, developing young talents in the insurance industry through the mentoring program and ensuring that the Institute and CIFM deliver all programmes in line with global best practices.

While the vision of CIFM is to be the ‘insurance training college of choice in Africa’, the Institute is also focused on reinventing itself, with the vision “To remain a world class professional body committed to the provision of an efficient and effective manpower for the insurance industry.’’

CIIN Donates 12, 000 Insurance Textbooks to Secondary Schools Nationwide

The Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) has distributed more than 12, 000 insurance textbooks to senior secondary schools across the six geo-political zones of the country through the various ministries of education and directly to such schools.

Sir Muftau Oyegunle, the President/Chairman of Council of the CIIN, said in Lagos that all tertiary institutions offering insurance in Nigeria, Cameroon and The Gambia also received two sets of CIIN course books to support and encourage the student members of the Institute to take their professional examinations.

“We have domesticated all our insurance textbooks but we still maintain a very healthy relationship with the Insurance Institute of London because insurance is a global business.”

On the importance of insurance to the national economy, Oyegunle said: “Insurance helps the economy to grow. It is a business that builds national wealth. A business that helps people to beat poverty. Insurance is in the interest of our future. It is our collective responsibility to take insurance to the level of higher percentage of penetration like what obtains in other countries.”