L-R: Wole Fayemi, MD/CEO, Heirs General Insurance, Mrs. Sadat Hassan, Assistant Comptroller General of Immigration; Chiugo Ndubisi, Group Executive Director, Heirs Holdings; Mrs. Caroline Wura-ola Adepoju, Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service; Dr. Awele V. Elumelu (OFR), Non-Executive Director, Heirs Holdings; Emmanuel Nnorom, Group CEO, Heirs Holdings; Niyi Onifade, MD/CEO, Heirs Life Assurance; and Tony Aniemeke, MD/CEO, Heirs Insurance Brokers; at the ribbon cutting ceremony of the 30KVA solar power station donated by Heirs Insurance Group to the Ikoyi Passport Office, earlier this week.

By Ngozi Onyeakusi—Heirs Insurance Group, Nigeria’s fastest-growing insurance group, has donated a 30KVA solar power station to the Ikoyi Passport Office, of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), to facilitate 24-hour passport production, a major challenge of the Service.

Through this project, Heirs Insurance Group demonstrates its commitment to sustainability and community development with a focus on impacting the lives of Nigerians.

Dr. Awele V. Elumelu (OFR), Non-Executive Director, Heirs Holdings, the parent company of the Heirs Insurance Group, led the delegation for the ribbon-cutting ceremony, alongside the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Mrs. Caroline Wura-ola Adepoju.

Passport issuance at the Nigeria Immigration Service has been plagued by frustrating delays in the recent past, mostly influenced by erratic power supply. The transformative CSR initiative spearheaded by Heirs Insurance Group intensifies the Group’s focus on sustainability and community empowerment by addressing a crucial need to provide uninterrupted power to the Passport Office. This strategic move empowers the Lagos Passport Office to overcome power interruptions, significantly reducing the delay in passport production and easing the frustrations faced by many Nigerians in the process.

During her speech, Dr. Awele V. Elumelu expressed her enthusiasm for the positive impact of the project, also drawing attention to the deliberate use of solar power which aligns with the Group’s commitment to clean energy solutions, a facet of its long-term sustainability goals.

She said: “As a Group, we continue to take pride in proactively creating value that impacts our community positively. This solar power initiative reiterates our commitment to improve lives and transform our country, and by extension, our continent.”

Dr. Elumelu also commended the Nigeria Immigration Service for its collaborative approach to tackling the harrowing challenge of delays during passport production and issuance, faced by millions of Nigerians. She stated that this partnership aligns with the Heirs Holdings Group’s philosophy of Africapitalism – a private-public handshake to accelerate economic development.

Speaking on the impact of the project initiative, Mrs. Caroline Wura-Ola Adepoju, Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service appreciated the donation from the Heirs Insurance Group, confirming that the project will significantly improve service delivery.

She said: “We would like to thank Heirs Insurance Group and its parent company, Heirs Holdings, for this support. It is a game-changer for us, and with this solar power station, our team will be able to work effectively with round-the-clock power capacity, which will help to reduce the duration for passport production.”

The commissioning ceremony witnessed a gathering of key stakeholders, government officials, and community representatives, including the CEOs of Heirs Insurance Group and top executives of Heirs Holdings, as well as key officials of the Nigeria Immigration Service.

Heirs Insurance Group is the insurance subsidiary of Heirs Holdings, the leading pan-African investment group, with investments across twenty-four countries and four continents, founded and chaired by Tony O. Elumelu (CFR).

With a rapidly expanding retail footprint and an omnichannel digital presence, Heirs Insurance Group is championing financial inclusion and leading the digital transformation of the Insurance ecosystem in Nigeria with a mission to democratize access to insurance.

As part of its unique proposition, the Heirs Insurance Group rolled out digital and mobile channels to simplify access to insurance and make insurance affordable to everyone.