By Bassey Udo
The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) and the Organized Private Sector (OPSN) are to work together to ensure a coordinated implementation of the provisions of the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025.
Representatives of the OPSN, led by Chairman of the OPS Insurance-Tech Committee, Dr. Alban Igwe, met with the NAICOM management to discuss the modalities for the working relationship.
Accompanied during the meeting by delegates from relevant federal ministries, Dr Igwe said the working relationship would facilitate the deployment of sector specific insurance products for the maritime and petroleum sectors.
The leader of the delegation said the engagement of the OPSN with NAICOM followed months of stakeholder consultations across the maritime and petroleum sectors, including freight forwarders, transport associations, retailers, and underwriters.
He told the Commissioner for Insurance that the delegation were at NAICOM for regulatory discussions on the implementation of the provisions of the NIIRA Act 2025 and operationalization of insurance products to address longstanding gaps in compensation and risk transfer in these sectors.
Dr. Igwe said the initiative was a multi-stakeholder, private sector-led effort mandated by two federal ministries (Ministries of Petroleum Resources and Blue Economy) to coordinate stakeholders and propose implementation of insurance provision under the NIIRA 2025.
OPSN identified umbrella organizations participating in the effort, including the Nigerian Chamber of Commerce, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, National Association of Small Scale Industries and trade associations in the transport and petroleum distribution sectors.
The OPSN described two priority tracks relating to Maritime sector product(s) to mitigate container and cargo-related losses and to provide faster compensation for affected parties.
The other relates to petroleum sector product(s) to provide public liability/commission liability cover for retail distribution and transit risks, particularly the need to tighten retail margins and to consider pricing templates.
The Commissioner for Insurance, who welcomed the initiative by the OPSN, said NAICOM was committed to collaborating with stakeholders towards effective implementation of the provisions of NIIRA 2025.
He emphasized that the Commission was responsible for issuing frameworks, guidelines, and premium determinations for compulsory insurance products under NIIRA 2025 to ensure that technical proposals aligned with the regulator’s remit.
The Commissioner stressed that consumer protection was paramount, while proposals must be justified and assessed for fairness.
The meeting concluded that a technical working group should be established to review the proposal and develop implementation modalities.
