Prof Pat Utomi

By Ngozi Onyeakusi— The Nigerian professor of political economy and management expert, Pat Utomi has said that Nigeria need insurance more than we need the banking sector for economic growth. Utomi who described insurance industry as a mobilizer of small scale capital for economic growth said this was why we insurance industry is more important than the banking sector.
Utomi said this yesterday while speaking as the Chairman of investiture ceremony organized in honour of Segun Omosehin as the 25th Chairman of the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA).
While giving a brief history of the Nigerian economy, Prof Utomi said “back in the days Nigeria’s economy was one of the strongest and progressive economy globally but today, the country is known as the headquarters of poverty,” adding that “Nigeria needs the contribution of every individual and Corporate entity for Nigeria to rise again.
While calling the insurance industry as a critical sector in the nation’s economy to play its role to make Nigeria rise again, he said “the question therefore is how and who will make it rise? Does insurance Industry have any role to play? I will say not only does insurance Industry has a great role to play, they have extra role to play.”
According to him, the Commissioner for Insurance has made very important remarks, he mentioned the fact that Insurance Industry is yet to take its pride of place in the financial ecosystem in Nigeria. Let me say to you what I have said many years ago at meetings of NIA such as this that the insurance Industry is more important than the banking industry; that the banking industry should be a junior brother of the insurance industry but this is the reverse and why is it so?
“What we need to meet our development is capital. How do we mobilize capital that can drive development? First of all to look at what is possible to the insurance industry, let’s look at what happened to even the banking industry that we are all say it is now extraordinary not to fail……
“…If we really look at capital mobilization and economic progress, you realize that in many other countries that insurance Industry is a greater point to leverage Small scale capital for development
“So we ask why has our insurance Industry not been able to play its role in our country? I think that is a challenge that we must look at. Insurance is about creativity and innovation in ensuring that risk can be spread and managed.”
He charged the new leadership of NIA to be creative, innovative and professional in the conduct and attitude to regain public trust and confidence just as he called called on the Industry to rise to its responsibility for the growth of the nation’s economy.