African Insurances Brokers Association elects new president
An Aviation Insurance expert, Mr Babajide Agbeja, has been elected the new President of the African Insurances Brokers Association (AIBA).
Mr Ikechi Uko, the Publisher of Atqnews, in a statement on Monday, described Agbeja as a thoroughbred insurance guru of many years and an experienced aviation insurance expert.
According to him, Agbeja, who is also the Chairman of BOFF &Co Insurance Brokers, will use his epitome of wisdom to advance the association to greater height.
Uko commended the speech of Agbeja, while speaking on ‘The role of Insurance in Aviation Business’ at the first ever Chinet Aviation and Cargo Conference in Nigeria in 2021.
“The second edition of the event will hold on the Sept. 7 to Sept. 8, in Lagos. This year’s event theme is: ‘The Role of Insurance and Regulation in Growing Aviation and Cargo Business in Nigeria.’
“It is expected to build on the successes recorded at the last event by addressing the challenges thrown up during the last conference,” he said.
He said the annual conference brought exporters, cargo managers, fogistics firms, airlines, airport, Customs, Insurance firms and everyone in the Aviation and Cargo ecosystem to chart a pathway that enables Nigerians to export more through airports.
According to Uko, Nigeria is still categorised as a high risk country for aviation and the insurance premiums because airlines operating in Nigeria are higher than in other country.
He said that the impact led to increase in the cost of doing aviation business in Nigeria.
“Furthermore, stakeholders opined that the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) should fine-tune their tier-based proposal for insurance companies so that their risk appetite will be determined by the capital they deploy for business.
“Also, insurance practitioners should start to specialise for improved technical knowledge and robust underwriting of aviation policies.
“In addition, stakeholders at the first edition of Chinet noted that Nigerian laws on cargo exportation and importation are not in tandem with the development around the world,” he said.
He said regulation in Nigeria’s export environment was inhibiting the growth of the sector.
According to him, insurance is an integral aspect of any business ecosystem that plays vital role in mitigating the inherent risks associated with running the business, especially as it relates to aviation and cargo.
He said Nigerian airlines had been a victim of high insurance premium due to some factors bedeviling the aviation sector regarding complaints of exploitation of airlines by Nigerian insurance companies.
“Nigerian Airlines allege that the law preventing Nigerian Airlines from using foreign insurers is prohibitive and is now a weapon of intimidation by Nigerian Insurers who lack the capacity to insure a brand new aircraft but charge high premium.
“It is alleged that Nigerian airlines pay the highest premiums in Africa. The role of air accidents and investigations on high insurance premiums will be examined and addressed, “ he said.
According to him, 2022 Chinet Conference will bring experts to help exporters take advantage of the emerging availability of capacity and airports to grow export capabilities.
He said the conference had been broken into three section; the role of insurance in aviation; the inherent opportunities of cargo airports to support export in Nigeria; and the regulation of air cargo in Nigeria.
Uko said that the 2022 edition would have foreign participants for the first time.
