The director-general of the Nigeria Insurers Association (NIA), Sunday Thomas has said that the industry was set to achieve a premium volume of N6trillion and total market asset base of N16trillion by the year 2020.
Thomas, who made the disclosure at an Insurance forum organised by Access Bank Plc also said the industry was expected to move from current employment of about 10,000 to generate employment of not less than 300,000 and increase penetration (Contribution to GDP) of 15 per cent from the current inconsequential 0.3 percent.
Thomas expressed optimism that the achievement of a density (Premium per Capital) of $ 256 was realistic in the next four years.
Other expectations include reduction of insurance Gap from 94 per cent to less than 30 per cent, inculcation of insurance culture among the citizenry and full adoption and implementation of solvency focused and risk- based supervision.
These expectations are coming just as the federal government announced new steps to address the current poor performance of insurance in the country.
Minister of finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, said at the just concluded West African Insurance Companies Association (WAICA) in Lagos, that in line with the move to diversify and develop the economy, government sees the sector as strategic tool that should be effectively utilised towards the attainment of the goal.
Adeosun, who was represented at the event by the director of ffficiency unit in the ministry of finance, Mrs Patience Oniha, said there was a strong link between insurance market development and economic development, adding that the commonly used index of measuring the development of insurance in an economy is market penetration which is the ratio of total insurance premiums to the gross domestic product(GDP).
According to the minister, insurance contributes less than one per cent to the GDP but to reverse the ugly situation, she said the government was committed to identifying the challenges and taking steps to address the current poor performance of insurance in the country.
“It is on this premise that in February, earlier this year, I inaugurated the Consolidated Insurance Bill Review Committee in a move that seeks to make the bill conform to the ideals of contemporary insurance practice as well as facilitate public awareness and consumer protection.
“We are optimistic that the work on the bill and its eventual passage to law would positively change the face of insurance regulation and practice in our country, Nigeria,” she said.
Adeosun called on the Nigerian Insurance Industry to fully cooperate with the committee setup to review the industry’s bill so as to come up with a draft that would be the impetus for rapid growth not only for their sector but the nation and in particular all consumers of insurance services alike.