C M Y K 26 — Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14, 2021 vicahiyoung@yahoo.com Consolidation of insurance firms necessary <strong>to</strong> break foreign dominance — Oyetunji Dr. Femi Oyetunji is the immediate past Gro<strong>up</strong> Managing Direc<strong>to</strong>r of Continental Reinsurance. In this interview, he speaks on changes that need <strong>to</strong> happen in the insurance industry <strong>to</strong> transform the sec<strong>to</strong>r. Excerpts: YOU spent close <strong>to</strong> 10 years in Continental Reinsurance as GMD, what are the highlights of your tenure especially in terms of surmounting the challenges of repositioning the company? Yes, on the 3rd of January 2011, when I first got in<strong>to</strong> Continental Re office at St. Nicholas House, Lagos, I knew I was going <strong>to</strong> face some challenges because we had only two existing reinsurance companies in Nigeria after the last recapitalisation exercise. At that time, the Deputy Managing Direc<strong>to</strong>r was a Nigerian, the Chief Financial Officer was an Ivorian and the Executive Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Operations (who is still with us now) is from Zimbabwe, and myself Nigerian. In Lagos, we had people from different parts of Africa; our shareholders were Americans, South Africans, and Nigerians, so it was not just Nigerians. At the time I <strong>to</strong>ok over in 2011, we had a branch in Douala, Cameroon and a branch in Nairobi, Kenya. Even in terms of location, we were multinational. I got in there and I saw a multinational company but some people saw a small Nigerian company. My initial challenge was <strong>to</strong> have a paradigm shift in philosophy and mentality, <strong>to</strong> see us not just as a small Nigerian brand but a multinational brand. Things were as bad as on Fridays, in Douala, Nairobi people will wear Ankara <strong>to</strong>ps <strong>to</strong> the office. I didn’t think that was what Continental Re was all about. Even from the name, the founders knew what they wanted. We will start work at 8.00 am Lagos time, which is 10 am in Nairobi. People in Nairobi couldn’t start work until 10 am their time because everything was centralized here in Lagos and there was no thinking about the Pan-African nature of our businesses in the way we run our offices. So, it was a great challenge <strong>to</strong> get people’s mind away from a narrow focus <strong>to</strong> a broader picture. As a leader, the first thing was <strong>to</strong> envision. Therefore, I came <strong>up</strong> with the vision of being the Premier and African reinsurer. We had everything in place, but we were not thinking Pan-African and International. Of course, the most difficult situation is <strong>to</strong> change people’s mindset from where they have been. This was very challenging, but after 10 years, not only have we succeeded in becoming a truly Pan- African and a well-respected brand, we have internalized the philosophy of being Pan-African in all we do as an organisation. Ten years is such a short time for that kind of transformation. The achievements are not just by our assessment, but last year, we commissioned a global perception company <strong>to</strong> see what people think about us and how we are perceived. The international standard score is 73, but we achieved 79. So, there is documentary evidence that we really transformed from being a small Nigerian reinsurance entity <strong>to</strong> a well-respected Pan-African brand. The insurance sec<strong>to</strong>r has experienced a number of reforms in the last 10 years. Which of these reforms excites you most? There have been great transformations in our industry over the last 10 years, not because I am an actuary but because it was an If we don’t reduce the number of insurance companies in this market, we are not going anywhere anomaly that we didn’t have actuaries operating in this industry and we have many of our offices writing annuity business. We have a lot of actuarial involvement, which means we have been more scientific, more analytical in our approach <strong>to</strong> risk management and risk-taking. We have come a long way off from the ‘if I know you and you know me, way we do business.’ In terms of insurance penetration, life and nonlife insurance, development in health care products, and digitalization, I can say a lot has taken place. This is the best time <strong>to</strong> work in this country particularly at Continental Re because the opportunities are immense. If we proceed along the current trajec<strong>to</strong>ry, we see a lot of new products and a new approach <strong>to</strong> doing things. We are at a very exciting time where we marry experience with technology, and I believe the insurance industry in this country is set <strong>to</strong> take over. What changes or transformation do you expect <strong>to</strong> see in the insurance industry? I am going <strong>to</strong> say the same thing I said in 2005, ‘if we don’t reduce the number of insurance companies in this market, we are not •Oyetunji going anywhere.’ My personal belief is that 15 <strong>to</strong> 20 well-capitalised, skilled insurance companies will transform the industry. What I will like <strong>to</strong> see is insurance companies talking <strong>to</strong> each other, looking for synergy, and saying, let us come <strong>to</strong>gether. The biggest threat at the moment is that global players with big capital and all that it takes <strong>to</strong> drive growth are here and taking a position. At the end of the day, they will take away the expected benefits. We can clearly see the danger, having seen the trend. Why we have not seen many of them at the moment is because of the economic situation. Once the situation improves, the big players from America and Europe will come in and dominate, and that is where the benefits will go. If the global players are based in the US, UK, or Germany, they will take the benefits <strong>to</strong> those places. What I will like <strong>to</strong> see is consolidation, having fewer insurance companies that have the requisite skills, the analytics, the technology and the products that people want. That is what will move us from the current less than one per cent penetration <strong>to</strong> at least double of that size at first, then we can get <strong>to</strong> five per cent, 10 per cent and more. Imagine the kind of industry we will have when the penetration gets <strong>to</strong> five per cent. There is a need for reinsurers and more big players. The only reason people go outside <strong>to</strong> place their risks is that we have exhausted what we have domestically. There is the local content law that we should take advantage of, but because the capacity is not there, we go outside, and we cannot overexpose our balance sheet <strong>to</strong> a single risk. There is a limit <strong>to</strong> what we can take. The recent licensing of a new reinsurance company by the National Insurance Commission, NAICOM, is a welcome development. I believe that we should keep Nigerian premium within Nigeria and African premium within Africa. We can use those premiums <strong>to</strong> build hospitals, build roads, and build other infrastructure and technology within our societies. Nobody will bring dollars from the US <strong>to</strong> build schools or roads for us, let us keep what we have within the economy. Review of pension: Retirees beg Buhari, say pensioners dying in penury By Vic<strong>to</strong>r Ahiuma- Young PENSIONERS who retired under the Defined Benefits Scheme, DBS, have petitioned President Muhammadu Buhari, pleading with him <strong>to</strong> intervene and order the <strong>up</strong>ward review of their pension in line with the 1999 Constitution, saying retirees are dying in penury. Under the National Association of Nigerian Pensioners, NANP, in the petition copied among others, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, Senate President, Sena<strong>to</strong>r Ahmed Lawan, Speaker, House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, Secretary <strong>to</strong> the Government of the Federation, SGF, Mr. Boss Mustapha, Head of Service of the Federation, Mrs Folashade Esan, Minister of Labour and Employment, Sena<strong>to</strong>r Chris Ngige, and Minister of Finance, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, was signed by NANP’s President and General Secretary, Ifeanyi Usifo and Femi Adebayo, respectively. Among others, the pensioners lamented that “our problem revolves around the undue delay by you <strong>up</strong>on approval of You're insensitive <strong>to</strong> our plight, S-West pensioners tell FG, <strong>govs</strong> By James Ogunnaike PENSIONERS in the South-West states of Ogun, Oyo, Ekiti, Osun, Ondo and Lagos states, have accused the Federal Government and the state governments in the zone of turning a blind eye <strong>to</strong> their suffering in spite of using their productive years <strong>to</strong> serve the country. Rising from their bimonthly meeting in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, the pensioners, specifically alleged that the Federal Government and governors of the South-West region are not sensitive <strong>to</strong> the plight of pensioners. The meeting was attended by pensioners from Ogun, Oyo, Ekiti, Osun, Ondo and Lagos states. Briefing journalists after the meeting, the Public Relations Officer of NUP, South-West zone, Olusegun Abatan, lamented that the federal and some state governments had refused <strong>to</strong> implement the 33.4 per cent pension increment the new National Minimum Wage in April 2019, almost two years ago. This unwholesome and inexplicable delay which has inflicted un<strong>to</strong>ld hardship on us is a clear violation of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution, as amended, particularly section 173, sub section 1 <strong>to</strong> 3. For instance, section 173, sub section 3, states that “Pensions shall be reviewed every five years or <strong>to</strong>gether with any Federal Civil Service salary reviews, whichever is earlier. “The last pension review in the public service of the federation was done on 1st July, 2015 over five years ago and the next one was due by 1st July 2020, over eight months ago, which is contrary <strong>to</strong> the constitutional provisions. The present state of high level of inflation in the economy has seriously eroded the purchasing power of our current pension. “Some of our members have passed on while waiting for this long overdue <strong>up</strong>ward review of pension. Why is the Federal Government treating us this way? Why is the FG treating us very unfairly compared <strong>to</strong> its treatment of our counterparts who are still in service? Is it because since 2010. According <strong>to</strong> him: “As I speak with you, Ondo State is owing its pensioners from November 2020 <strong>to</strong> date and we want <strong>to</strong> appeal <strong>to</strong> Governor Rotimi Akeredolu <strong>to</strong> address the issue of non-payment of pensions of our members in Ondo State promptly. We don’t want <strong>to</strong> believe that the pension of our members is being used for non-essential pension matters. “Ogun State, like other states in the nation, has violated and still violating the Constitutional provisions of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, section 210(3) where it is stated that pension should be increased concomitantly as wages of workers are increased. “Ogun State Government has refused <strong>to</strong> implement the pension increase of our members since 2010. I’m talking of the 33.4 per cent pension increase. “In Osun State, the payment of gratuity is done <strong>to</strong> selected pensioners rather than all pensioners. We want we are a set of hapless and powerless old men and women who, because we are no longer in service, cannot down <strong>to</strong>ols or go on strike <strong>to</strong> compel the Federal Government <strong>to</strong> do the needful by complying with the relevant portion of the Nigerian Constitution? We don’t deserve this kind of unjust treatment at our old age, having served this nation meri<strong>to</strong>riously in the past in our youthful age.” According <strong>to</strong> them: “Having drawn your attention <strong>to</strong> our plight, we implore you <strong>to</strong> urgently intervene <strong>to</strong> save us from further hardship and even untimely death. We are appealing <strong>to</strong> you <strong>to</strong> kindly approve the white paper on pension review and awaited circular on pension increase <strong>to</strong> enable the relevant ministries, departments and agencies, MDAs, of g o v e r n m e n t expeditiously implement the approved review in their respective establishments without any further delay, hopefully, before the end of April, 2021.” The petition added that “your prompt action in this regard will be highly appreciated by the generality of Nigerian pensioners.” the Governor of Osun State, Gboyega Oye<strong>to</strong>la <strong>to</strong> please remove this selectivity in payment of gratuity <strong>to</strong> pensioners in the state.” The pensioners also condemned the bill seeking <strong>to</strong> remove the minimum wage from the exclusive legislative list <strong>to</strong> the concurrent legislative list, saying “it is quite insulting and out of common sense and logic that at every point in time, workers and pensioners are left <strong>to</strong> bear the brunt of missgovernance in Nigeria. They also aligned with the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, on the demand that minimum wage should not be removed from the exclusive list <strong>to</strong> the concurrent list. All pensioners in the whole of the federation are in s<strong>up</strong>port of this because we know that if this happens <strong>to</strong> workers, it will be worse for pensioners because at that level, the governors will do nothing than <strong>to</strong> start intimidating and punishing workers and they will start giving them whatever they want <strong>to</strong> give them.
Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14, 2021—27
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