Mr Sunday Thomas, the Commissioner for Insurance/CEO, National Insurance Commission, NAICOM, has stressed that artificial intelligence (AI) is key to the future of insurance business in Nigeria.

Delivering a keynote address at the 8th BusinessToday annual conference & exhibition with the theme, “The World of AI: How Insurance and Pension Sectors Can Explore Opportunities for Market Penetration”, in Lagos,Thomas, who spoke for  Ajibola Olabisi Bankole the Deputy Director, Lagos Office of NAICOM,  urged insurance operators to increase adoption in this area as it gives better productivity and enhanced profitability, while ensuring quick service delivery and claims payment to insurance consumers.

He said, technology adoption is part of the 10-year roadmap of the insurance industry, adding that NAICOM, as a regulator, will continue to evolve policies that will engender the growth of the industry, increase penetration and contribute to the nation’s GDP.

According to the statement, the conference chairman Mr Tope Smart, who is also the Chairman of NEM Insurance Plc, stated that the level of insurance penetration in Nigeria when benchmarked with the global penetration, adding that a lot of factors were responsible for the increase in penetration level.

He said lack of low enforcement is affecting the adoption of compulsory insurances even as he said that the industry is working assiduously to partner agencies responsible for enforcement so as to increase insurance adoption.

“It is quite saddening that out of a population of 200 million, only about three million people are actually insured. Lack of enforcement is a challenge but the industry is working round the clock to increase enforcement through the regulatory and enforcement bodies.

“Consumers’ apathy due to bad experience they had in the past is affecting policy renewals but I can assure Nigerians that there are various complaint avenues for people to lodge complaints. If your legitimate claims are not settled, you can approach Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) and NAICOM; if your complaints are genuine, they will be definitely resolved,” he assured.

Also speaking, Mr Edwin Igbiti, the President, Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria, said the growing insurance industry will require that the nation’s economy be derisked, while seeking partnership with government and other stakeholders to deepen insurance penetration.

He noted that AI will increase insurance premium growth, enhance service delivery and ensure that the insurance sector contributes more to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product(GDP).