Mr. Tope Smart, Group Managing Director/CEO, NEM Insurance Plc is billed to assume the Presidency of the African Insurance Organisation (AIO) during the 47th AIO Conference & General Assembly holding in Lagos from September 4-8, 2021.
Smart was the immediate past Chairman of the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA), the umbrella body of insurance operators in Nigeria and current Vice-President of the AIO when Nigeria was slated to host the Conference in 2020 but was then postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mrs. Ebelechukwu Nwachukwu, Chairperson of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the 47th AIO Conference confirmed the development during a virtual media briefing thus:
“One of the major highlights of the 47th Conference is that the immediate past chairman of the Nigerian Insurers Association and Group managing Director of NEM Insurance Plc, Mr. Tope Smart will assume office as the next president of the pan-African organisation for the next one year and he deserves our support and good wishes.”
Tope Smart, a graduate and an award winner from the University of Lagos also holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He is an Associate member of both the Chartered Insurance Institute of London and the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria.
Tope, an astute professional, believes very strongly in the entrenchment of insurance in the mind of every Nigerian. He is a Council member, Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria, Council member, West African Insurance Companies Association (Ghana), Council member, Nigeria-Britain Association, current Vice-President, African Insurance Organisation (AIO) and a past Chairman of the Nigeria Insurers Association to mention but a few.
Tope sits on the Board of several companies amongst which are RegencyNem Insurance (Ghana) Limited and NEM Asset Management Limited. In 2014, he was appointed by the Federal Government as Co-Chairman of Insurance Industry Transformation Committee. He was also recently appointed as Chairman, Planning Committee of the University of Lagos Alumni Association’s Golden Jubilee Anniversary.
In recognition of his outstanding achievements, Tope has won several awards amongst which are Distinguished Alumnus by the University of Lagos, University of Lagos Alumni Association Golden Jubilee Special Recognition Award amongst others. He is also a two-time winner of the Businessday Top 25 CEOs award.
Tope is an alumnus of Harvard Business School.
