Insurance NGO to steer revolution, boosts awareness

 

 

 

Chuks Udo Okonta

Transparent Protection Limited/Gte (TPL), a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) that would help deepen insurance awareness is set to be launched on June 18, 2013, in Abuja.

Its Programme Manager, Godson Ibekwe-Umelo, who disclosed this at a roundtable organised for the media and selected civil society groups at Top Rank Hotel in Abuja, said the launch which would hold at International Women Development Centre, would bring all insurance industry big wigs and other stakeholders.

According to him, TPL is coming to steer revolution in insurance sector in Nigeria which to date has remained relatively underdeveloped despite huge potential. He regretted that Nigeria’s Insurance Industry’s contribution by the ratio to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is less than one per cent while the industry is ranked 87^th in the world in terms of  penetration.

 

He said TPL is poised to help reverse this unfortunate trend by proactively mobilizing citizens, especially at the grassroots to take up insurance protection, adding that the organisation will facilitate a platform for guaranteeing settlement of all genuine claims.

Ibekwe-Umelo, said: “With a huge population of between 150 and 160 million people, the insurance sector in Nigeria has potential to become the biggest insurance market in Africa and among the largest in the world.  Regrettably, the sector has remained underdeveloped relative to other countries with similar population advantage.

“Transparent Protection Ltd/Gte (TPL) was established in 2012 to help address the challenges of insurance sector underdevelopment in Nigeria. Towards realizing this goal, TPL has established a robust platform for mobilizing the insuring public at the grassroots for mass patronage of insurance products and ensuring timely settlement of all genuine claims.”

He said the vision of the organisation is to be the foremost not-for-profit organization that is driving insurance development in Africa and that the mission is to facilitate and sustain a complementary platform that guarantees mass patronage for insurance products and ensures settlement of all genuine claims.

He noted that its core values are transparency, accountability, reliability and equal opportunity, adding that its objectives include to increase the level of insurance awareness through consistent grassroots sensitizations, to help accelerate the pace of insurance development in Nigeria through collaboration with relevant agencies of government and other stakeholders, to promote and influence policy making in the insurance sector through civil society advocacy, to initiate and implement programmes aimed at strengthening and sustaining transparency in insurance protection and to provide professional legal and insurance support services to target group

He said the thematic areas the organisation would focus on are: Advocacy, education, mobilization and transparency and governance

“Our gender sensitive board is presently composed of five distinguished Nigerians from the relevant backgrounds. The board’s primary responsibilities include providing policy direction and approving implementation plans and processes of the organisation.

 “The management team consists of qualified, experienced and focused men and women committed to the realization of organizational objectives. They are a through bred of professionals with proven track records in the fields of law, insurance, and Community Advocacy.

“TPL’s programmes and activities are packaged under three major Projects and Initiatives namely, Law and Insurance Project (LIN), Transparent Action Policy Project (TAPP) and Insurance Sector Empowerment Initiative (ISEI).

“The LIP encapsulates Insurance Support Services, Legal Aid/Public Interest Litigation, and Community Mobilization. The Insurance Support Services programme is a platform for providing pre-insurance contract consumer support, and also relevant technical assistance for pursuing claims settlement. The Legal Aid/Public Interest Litigation programme provides legal support services for members of a target group who have been denied settlement of genuine claims. “The Community Mobilization programme is designed to reach out to the grassroots for creating awareness on the need for insurance protection, and to purchase insurance protection only from registered insurance companies.

“The TAPP incorporates programme for Legislative and Policy Advocacy, as well as for Campaigns and Media. The Legislative and Policy Advocacy programme aims at enhancing, promoting and sustaining transparency and good governance in the insurance industry. The Campaign programme focuses on engendering and strengthening best practice in the insurance industry, while the Media programming and features Radio and TV programmes are designed as a platform for generating informed discussion among stakeholders.

“The ISEI has two elements namely, programme for assisting in building capacity for the insurance industry generally, and for conducting necessary researches and disseminating the report of findings for the benefit of the insurance industry,” he added.

He said TPL is not an insurance company, therefore, it does not underwrite insurance risks and settle claims, adding that it is simply a system support organisation that helps the insurer and insured to more easily understand their rights and obligations under insurance contract.

He said TPL is neither insurance agent nor insurance broker. However it is part of TPL’s mandate to ensure that the insuring public in Nigeria is fairly treated by insurance service providers including insurance brokers and agents. Where necessary, TPL can recommend trusted brokers and agent to members.

“It is important to TPL that insurance institutions in Nigeria play within the rules and to be as much as possible transparent in their relationship with policyholders. TPL has programmes that can help insurance institutions build capacity and apply best practices in their operations.

“NAICOM is the statutory regulator of insurance business in Nigeria. NAICOM sets standards for insurance practice and enforces compliance with insurance laws and regulations. It also has mandate to protect the interest of insurance policyholders. TPL will collaborate with NAICOM to ensure compliance by insurance institutions with insurance laws and regulations. TPL will also support NAICOM initiated insurance industry development initiatives, and in particular, the on-going Market Restructuring and Development Initiative (MDRI),” he said.

Ibekwe-Umelo said is funded by contribution from members, free will donations from individuals and organizations interested in insurance development and fees from consultancy services.

He maintained that the organisation provides you with advisory services prior to purchase of insurance policy and supports you to make genuine claims in the event of unjust denial by the insurer.  Stressing that the range of professional services rendered by TPL is available only to its members and that TPL membership is open to Nigerians and non Nigerian residents who have interest (directly or indirectly) in insurance business in Nigeria.

He noted that two classes of membership exist namely, individual and corporate membership. Corporate membership registration attracts a fee of N50, 000 only, while individual membership registration is for N5, 000 only.

He said registration can be done either on-line or by visiting any of the organisation’s offices in Lagos and Abuja, adding that for on-line registration, people should click on “Registration on our website.

He said upon registration, people will be issued with a membership registration number, and that issuance of registration number is therefore an evidence of registration and this becomes the person’s identity for future communications with the organisation.