BY NGOZI ONYEAKUSI

The Commissioner for Insurance and Chief Executive Officer of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), Mr Olusegun Ayo Omosehin, has called for the repositioning of the insurance industry as a strategic catalyst for Nigeria’s economic transformation and sustainable development.

Omosehin made the call while delivering the keynote address at the 2026 Insurance Professionals’ Forum in Abeokuta, Ogun State, with the theme, “The Economics of Risk: Sustaining a Resilient Insurance Industry.”
According to him, insurance is far more than a financial service, describing it as a strategic instrument for economic stability and an institutional mechanism through which societies transform uncertainty into confidence and vulnerability into resilience.

He noted that insurance enables individuals, businesses and governments to undertake productive activities without bearing the full burden of uncertainty through risk pooling, diversification and risk transfer.

The NAICOM boss said the industry occupies a strategic position in every economy, as it mobilises long-term savings, facilitates investment, supports financial stability, protects households, promotes entrepreneurship, encourages capital formation and underwrites economic growth.

He stressed that critical sectors of the Nigerian economy, including agriculture, infrastructure, trade and energy, require effective insurance protection to achieve sustainable growth.

“Insurance is often described as the invisible infrastructure of economic development because its contribution, though frequently unnoticed, is indispensable,” he said.

Emerging Risks
Omosehin observed that the architecture of risk was changing rapidly, with traditional risks now existing alongside increasingly complex threats arising from climate change, technological disruption, cyber vulnerabilities, geopolitical uncertainties and macroeconomic instability.

He said climate change had altered catastrophe patterns, with floods, droughts, desertification, storms and environmental degradation producing losses that were becoming larger, more frequent and less predictable.

He added that digital transformation had created a new risk frontier, with cyber threats capable of disrupting businesses, compromising critical infrastructure and generating significant financial losses.

According to him, insurers can no longer depend exclusively on historical loss data to predict future experience.
He therefore urged insurance companies to embrace predictive analytics, enterprise risk management, scenario modelling, climate intelligence and advanced technological tools in their decision-making processes.

NIIRA 2025, recapitalisation
The Commissioner said the enactment of the Nigeria Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025 had ushered the industry into a new phase characterised by higher expectations, stronger institutions, enhanced regulatory oversight and renewed commitment to policyholder protection.
He described the recent recapitalisation exercise as one of the major milestones in the industry’s reform agenda, stressing that it was not merely about raising financial thresholds but about strengthening institutional capacity and deepening market resilience.

According to him, stronger capital bases would enable insurers to retain larger risks, settle claims more efficiently, invest in technology and human capital, support innovation, participate in major national projects and compete effectively in regional and global markets.

“The true measure of recapitalization therefore lies not in balance sheet expansion alone, but in the creation of stronger, more resilient institutions capable of delivering sustainable value to policyholders and the broader economy,” he said.

Trust remains critical
Omosehin identified trust as the most valuable asset in insurance, noting that policyholders pay premiums today based on the confidence that insurers will honour valid obligations in the future.

He said strong governance, ethical leadership, transparency, accountability, fair market conduct and prompt claims settlement were fundamental to building public confidence in the sector.
He also noted that the establishment of the Insurance Policyholders’ Protection Fund under NIIRA 2025 would provide an additional safety net in situations involving insurer distress.

Technology and professional development
The Commissioner further urged insurers to embrace technological innovation, particularly artificial intelligence, machine learning, predictive analytics, blockchain, geospatial intelligence and digital platforms.

He said these technologies were transforming underwriting, claims processing, fraud management, customer engagement, product development and risk assessment.
“The future will not necessarily belong to the largest insurers, but increasingly to the most adaptive insurers,” Omosehin said, stressing that digital transformation should be regarded as a strategic imperative rather than an operational option.

He also emphasised the importance of human capital development, saying the increasing complexity of risks required insurance professionals with multidisciplinary expertise covering actuarial science, economics, finance, data analytics, cybersecurity, climate risk assessment, governance and enterprise risk management.
He charged the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN) to remain a leading custodian of professional competence, ethical standards and technical excellence in the industry.

Call for greater insurance inclusion
Omosehin described the large number of uninsured and underinsured Nigerians as both a developmental challenge and an enormous opportunity for the industry.

He said expanding insurance coverage would strengthen economic resilience by protecting households from financial shocks, enabling small businesses to recover from losses, supporting agricultural productivity, promoting financial inclusion and contributing to poverty reduction and social stability.
He called for innovative solutions such as microinsurance, agricultural insurance, inclusive health protection mechanisms and technology-enabled distribution platforms to reach underserved populations.

He added that insurance products must become more affordable, accessible, understandable and responsive to the realities of Nigerian consumers.

The Commissioner stressed that building a resilient insurance industry was a collective responsibility involving insurers, reinsurers, brokers, loss adjusters, technology providers, policymakers, professional bodies, educational institutions, development partners and consumers.

He concluded by urging stakeholders to position insurance not merely as a mechanism for indemnification but as a strategic catalyst for Nigeria’s economic transformation and sustainable development.

“With shared vision, disciplined execution, and unwavering commitment, I am confident that we shall build an insurance industry that does not merely respond to future shocks, but possesses the resilience and capacity to emerge stronger from them,” he said.