The Ghana insurance industry has held its 22nd Annual Conference of the Association of Insurers and Reinsurers of Developing Countries (AIRDC) as part of its goal to expand international collaboration and cooperation in the fields of insurance and reinsurance.
The conference was organised by the National Insurance Commission (NIC), Insurance Brokers Association of Ghana (IBAG), Ghana Insurers Association (GIA), Chartered Insurance Institute of Ghana (CIIG), Chartered Insurance Ladies Association of Ghana, and the National Association of Ghana Insurance Agents (NAGIA).
The conference was held under the theme “Building Resilience in the heat of a Global Economic Tussle” in Accra on Monday.
AIRDC’s main objective is to strengthen the insurance market in developing countries, and to foster inter-regional cooperation within the insurance industry.
Speaking in a keynote address at the Conference, the Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and Sahel (UNOWAS), Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, noted that from his experiences with the United Nations (UN), the African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), he had come to appreciate the value of collective action in resolving common challenges.
According to him, the persistent challenges of poverty in parts of the world led to global deliberations, resulting in the adoption of the United Nations Global Compact, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with the noble objective of ensuring development that leaves no one behind.
“Several global macroeconomic and geopolitical challenges, such as rising inflation, ongoing cross-border disruptions in some regions, and continuing COVID-19 concerns, threatened to decrease growth and profitability” he added.
He continued: “The difficulties associated with embargoes on some economies, and the disruptions to supply chains and maritime transport have threatened our efforts to establish a global [a] economy based on the principle of the free flow of goods and services.
“Yet, in my opinion, things would have been much worse if we hadn’t had insurance to play a critical role in promoting disaster resilience, by providing financial protection and preventing negative economic hardships after the disasters.”
The Commissioner of Insurance, Dr. Justice Ofori, in his remarks noted that insurance policy for the uncertain future became more conspicuous to persons and organisations which, hitherto, were averse to insurance.
Dr. Justice Ofori stated that the insurance sector globally had witnessed appreciable growth in the past two years, albeit the many challenges, including high claims payments.
“Ghana’s insurance industry, like the insurance industry worldwide, was challenged by circumstances due to COVID, but we managed to keep our heads above waters. I am sure the same is true for my colleague regulators.”
He reiterated that the insurance business was built on trust and the commitment to fulfill promises, so a suitable dose of prudential supervision was necessary for it to grow and flourish.
Despite the opportunities, he acknowledged that the insurance market in developing countries still faced some notable challenges, key among which were lack of trust in insurance, unhealthy competition, bad corporate governance practices, and fluctuating boardroom ethics.
