CIIN President, Ilori

BY NGOZI ONYEAKUSI 

Mrs. Yetunde Ilori has formally concluded her tenure as the 52nd President and Chairman of Council of the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN), leaving office with a legacy of expanded insurance awareness, youth engagement, digital transformation and stronger industry collaboration.

Speaking during a valedictory media conference in Lagos, Ilori highlighted the major milestones recorded under her administration, describing them as deliberate efforts to reposition insurance as a vital pillar of Nigeria’s financial and economic development.

She identified the institutionalisation of the annual Insurance Week as one of the administration’s biggest achievements, noting that the initiative has evolved into a national platform for promoting insurance awareness and financial inclusion.

According to her, the institute also strengthened collaboration with key stakeholders across the insurance industry, introduced the Insurance Hackathon to encourage innovation among young Nigerians, distributed insurance books to schools to enhance insurance education, and embarked on the ongoing programme to train one million Nigerian youths in insurance and financial literacy.

Ilori further disclosed that CIIN partnered with the Federal Government to facilitate the inclusion of insurance in WAEC and NECO examinations as part of efforts to promote insurance education at the secondary school level.

She also listed the automation of the institute’s operations, digitisation of professional examinations across West Africa, and continuous investment in the College of Insurance to improve professional capacity and manpower development as significant accomplishments.

Speaking on the insurance awareness week, she stated,

“We created awareness that deepened and positioned insurance as a protector of the financial economy. We also enriched the quality of CIIN programmes by drawing valuable contributions from the diaspora to strengthen our local market. We remain committed to leveraging knowledge from within and outside the country for capacity development,” she said.

“I am not a success until the industry becomes successful. The industry has moved forward during my tenure, and I am confident my successor will build on these achievements,” she stated.

She explained that her administration’s EPIC Agenda became the driving force behind virtually every initiative undertaken by the institute, with education serving as its foundation.

Under the agenda, CIIN broadened its focus beyond insurance professionals to include children, students, teachers, entrepreneurs and the general public. The institute published two insurance books for children aged four to sixteen and expanded financial literacy programmes to encourage greater awareness of insurance among young Nigerians.

Ilori noted that the one-million-youth insurance education initiative, being implemented in collaboration with the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), the Federal Ministry of Youth Development and other partners, represents one of the institute’s most ambitious public awareness projects.

She added that the institute continued to advocate the reintroduction of insurance education in secondary schools while ensuring insurance remained part of national financial literacy conversations.

On the One Insurance Industry initiative, Ilori said CIIN’s participation in the industry tour to Abia State has generated interest from several other state governments seeking similar engagements.

She expressed appreciation to the media for its consistent support throughout her administration and urged journalists to extend the same cooperation to the incoming CIIN leadership as the institute continues to advance professionalism and deepen insurance awareness across Nigeria.