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The Acting Commissioner of Insurance, Dr. Abiba Zakariah, has called on insurance industry practitioners to embrace new ways of doing the insurance business.
She made this statement while outlining some strategic pillars to improve insurance penetration in the country.
“I am challenging us all to set the pace for changing and sanitizing our market and I believe that if we are determined, it can happen and it will change Ghana”, she stated.
Dr. Abiba Zakariah made these remarks as the Chairperson while addressing the 10th Annual Educational Conference and Exhibition of the Insurance Brokers Association of Ghana (IBAG) held at Nkwatia-Kwahu in the Eastern Region.
Remarks by the Commissioner of Insurance
In her remarks as the Chairperson of the occasion, Dr. Abiba Zakariah, used the occasion to stress the need for industry practitioners to adhere to professional ethics to enhance public trust and elevate the insurance sector.
“IBAG serves as the national voice of insurance brokers and advocates the interests of insurance consumers”, she noted.
She highlighted the direction the insurance regulator is headed in its bid to position the industry much better in order to improve on the insurance penetration rate which is just about 1% as regards its contribution to the country’s GDP.
According to Dr. Zakariah, the three (3) pillars on which the new direction is heading are woven around:
Sanitizing the Insurance Market;
Growing the Insurance Market through Technology and;
Positioning Ghana’s Insurance Market Internationally
These pillars, the regulator believed would change the game exponentially for the growth of the industry where other stakeholders including consumers such as transport unions, market traders and other organized groups would be part of the product decision-making process, not just as consumers of insurance products and services.
Dr. Abiba Zakariah, also advised industry players to uphold professional ethics to advance the growth of the industry.
She congratulated members of the association for their efforts in promoting the business of insurance.
IBAG President’s address
In his opening statement, Mr Shaibu Ali, President of IBAG admonished insurance companies to operate with integrity and cooperation to help dispel some not-so-pleasant perception about the business of insurance.
He emphasized the importance of insurance entities in financial planning and encouraged Ghanaians to invest in insurance policies for future unfortunate mishaps which often give no clue until the worst happens.
Mr. Ali reaffirmed IBAG’s commitment to addressing challenges within the sector and called on industry players to uphold professionalism and improve service delivery.
The IBAG President, further called on insurance companies to upgrade their recruitment processes and working conditions of their sales executives with the view to promoting professionalism and ethical conduct in selling insurance products and services to prospective clients.
Mr. Ali emphasized the need for insurance companies to work with integrity to change the negative perceptions people hold about the industry.
He noted that clients often face challenges when making claims due to misinformation from field staff or a lack of proper policy information, the reason he tasked companies to improve their recruitment standards and working conditions to enable professional growth and customer satisfaction.
Mr. Ali further underscored the importance of insurance policies, encouraging people of all backgrounds to invest in policies for their own future security.
Participation
The conference, which attracted about 300 participants from across the country, served as a platform to review the industry’s progress and strategize for the future.
Theme of the conference and resource persons
The Conference which was the tenth of its kind was under the theme: Leadership: Building Resilience through Cooperation and Ethical Conduct’.
Some of the key resource persons who presented thought-provoking experiences and strategies were Mr Kenneth Kwamina Thompson, former CEO of Dalex Finance (keynote speaker), Capt (Rtd) Prince Kofi Amoabeng and Mr C.K. Akonnor, a former Black Stars Football Captain and Coach of the Senior National Team.
They shared their various thoughts and perspectives on the thematic area while engaging the participants in a learn-unlearn-and-relearn approach.
Insurance from the lens of the Justices of the courts of Law
One of the main presentations was one the delivered with focus on the theme from the lens of the Justices of the courts of Law aptly delivered by His Lordship Justice Kweku Tewia Ackaah-Boafo, a Justice of the Court of Appeal of the Republic of Ghana.
He reiterated the need to continuously engage with the Judiciary with the view to having a common comprehension of the technical ambiguities that are often created whenever insurance cases get to the courts of law.
Health and wealth
‘Health and wealth go hand-in-hand’, it is often said. It was for this reason that Ms. Justina Owu-Agyiri, a practising licensed counselling psychologist engaged participants on the importance of mental health and the need to take it seriously in spite of the heavy expectations from employers to deliver.
She intimated that it is almost impossible to be productive if one is not mentally sound in the course of discharging their duties.
Exhibitions
Many insurance companies, brokers and ancillary service providers mounted stands to explain to participants the benefits of their various insurance products.
Among those who visited the exhibition stands were the Commissioner of Insurance (ag.), Dr. Abiba Zakariah, the IBAG President and all past Presidents of IBAG, among other dignitaries.
What is IBAG?
The Insurance Brokers Association of Ghana (IBAG) is the Ghanaian national trade association for NIC-licensed Insurance Brokers and the recognized voice of Insurance Brokers who serve as advocates, advisors and consultants for insurance consumers at no fees to policyholders.
Who is an insurance broker?
An insurance broker acts as a technical intermediary between a policyholder or a prospective one and an insurance company / underwriter.
A broker is a company armed with both insurance technical know-how and is able to advise policyholders on what policies best suits their needs.
Brokers receive commissions (also known as brokerages) from insurers for their services to a policyholder, and not from the policyholders.
The commission amount varies based on the policy and is typically calculated as a percentage of the premium.
It is important to note that insurance brokers also make life easier for policyholders in the event of insured claims occurring as they assume the responsibility of handling the claim settlements and payments with insurance companies on behalf of the policyholders.
