Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia says the government will modernise the provision of insurance services in Ghana through digitalisation and urged stakeholders in the industry to work together to engender trust.
He said the government’s vision is to improve micro and agricultural insurance products to expand access and strengthen the balance sheet of the insurance industry.
Vice-President Bawumia said this at the annual general meeting and education meeting of the West African Insurance Companies Association (WAICA) in Accra.
The two-day conference was on the theme: “The New Normal, Fact or Fiction – How Realistic in Practice and Spread of Insurance in West Africa?”
It attracted insurance companies and stakeholders to discuss and strategise on ways of expanding services amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Vice-President called on industry players to support government’s agenda towards ensuring a financially inclusive society.
He said the country was on a recovery path from the ravages of the COVID-19 as statistics showed a growth rate of 5.4% last year.
Such a performance, Dr Bawumia indicated, would reflect, on average, all key drivers of the economy.
The insurance industry is a critical area of focus in driving the country’s development efforts, he said, and that government would ensure it feeds into the capital market and translates it into broader economic growth.
As part of the government’s digitalisation drive, the National Insurance Commission (NIC) had implemented a motor insurance database to curb the menace of vehicles with fake motor insurance tickets.
With the implementation of the motor insurance, the Vice-President said it had led to growth from 19% in 2020 and 26% in 2021, while the value of the business also increased from GH¢566 million in 2017 to GH¢2.3 billion in 2021.
There was also effort to integrate the databases of the NIC and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) to ensure harmony in accessing insurance services to rid the industry of illegalities, he added.
Dr Bawumia commended the association’s strategies towards improving insurance coverage and penetration in West Africa.
The government, he said, had put in place measures such as the passage of a new Insurance Act, which provides stringent regulatory framework to protect consumers and increase accessibility of insurance to the Ghanaian populace, particularly to the informal sector, operators and consumers in the low-income bracket.
“It also provides measures aimed at strengthening the corporate governance practices within the industry and in accordance with international best principles of risk based supervisory framework,” he said.
“The new Insurance Act had also strengthened the regulatory powers of the NIC and provided the regulation of marine insurance, agricultural insurance, micro insurance and innovative insurance.”
Government has also embarked on a recapitalisation of the insurance industry to help strengthen the balance sheet of regulated insurance entities, aimed at enhancing the underwriting capacity of insurance to enable them to assume higher insurance risk, he said.
It would ensure resource availability for investment in essential productive areas such as technology, product development, and distribution of appropriate insurance packages.
The Commissioner of the NIC, Dr Justice Yaw Ofori, stated that the ongoing recapitalisation remains one of the NICs crucial projects.
That, he said, was because the NIC believes that its implementation would set the platform for much growth and profitability within the industry.
Dr Ofori said the Commission was also working keenly with partner stakeholders to enforce the implementation of the various compulsory insurances.
He urged fellow insurers to transform their businesses and operating modules to re-emerge stronger than before.
