China confirms the identities of 132 crash victims via DNA

Chinese authorities have revealed that all 132 victims of the China Eastern Airlines Flight MU5735 crash have been identified through DNA testing. The Boeing 737-800 crashed into a hillside in Wuzhou en route to Guangzhou on Monday last week.

DNA testing identifies all 132 crash victims
After the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) confirmed that none of the 132 passengers and crew from China Eastern Airlines Flight MU5735 survived, Chinese authorities have identified all victims via DNA testing.

Liu Kaihui, from the Ministry of Public Security’s forensic evidence department, said DNA samples from relatives and other biometric measures confirmed the identities of all victims
During an official news conference on Monday, Kaihui also revealed that public security authorities across 20 regions were mobilized to collect DNA samples from relatives of those onboard.

Twenty DNA experts carried out analyses and had identified 120 of the victims (114 passengers and six crew) by Saturday. The identity of the final victim was confirmed on Monday. Kaihui added,
Zhu Tao, CAAC aviation safety director, said,

“We are collecting as much debris as possible, as well as eyewitness footage, because black boxes alone may not be enough to reveal what really happened. We’ll release key findings to the public in a timely manner.”

However, search operations at the hilly and forested crash site near Wuzhou have been hampered by ongoing rainfall. The search has involved more than 15,600 firefighters and armed police, with over 36,000 pieces of debris recovered so far.

Additionally, a Guangxi official confirmed that no key compounds from explosives had been detected at the crash site.

AXA Mansard Insurance Plc declares N0.25 dividend to shareholders

By admin

 

AXA Mansard Plc has announced a dividend payment of N0.25 kobo per 50 kobo ordinary share for the financial year ended 31 December 2021.

This dividend payment will be subject to shareholders’ approval at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and appropriate withholding tax.

According to the disclosure filed with The Exchange (NGX), shareholders are to ensure their names are registered in the Register of Members by the qualification date of April 28, 2022.

On Thursday, May 12, 2022, the dividend which amounts to N2.25 billion will be disbursed electronically to ordinary shareholders whose names appear on the Register of Members as at Thursday, April 28th 2022, and those who have completed the e-dividend registration and mandated the Registrar to pay their dividends directly into their bank accounts.

The company’s registrar is Datamax Registrars Limited and the e-dividend mandate form can be downloaded or filled online on the registrar’s website.
AXA Mansard Plc has 9,000,000,000 outstanding shares and a market capitalization of N19.44 billion at the time of filing this report. The company’s shares opened trading on the 30th of March, 2022 at N2.16 per share and closed at N2.16 per share.

Ghana Reinsurance opens office in Casablanca, Morrocco

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

The Ghana Reinsurance Company has established its presence in Casablanca, Morocco to serve the African Northern Market.

The new office comes in line with the expansion strategy of the Ghanaian reinsurer in North Africa.

Created in 1972, Ghana Re operates also in Kenya and Cameroon through regional structures. In 2020, the company achieved a 23% turnover increase to 311.56 million GHC (52.968 million USD).

Board Chairman of the company George Otoo had late last year revealed this after a short ceremony of swearing in the newly reconstituted board of the Ghana Reinsurance Company.

With the aim of helping to strengthen the financial sector and mobilizing funds for economic growth, Mr. George Otoo stated that the company is finally ready to strengthen its operations across the continent of Africa.

He said plans are underway to enter the North African Market.
“Work is currently in progress to open a third office in Casablanca, Morocco to serve the northern African regional block” he said.

Ghana Re, has established regional office in Cameroon to cater for the central African Zone and it’s a 100% subsidiary of Re Ghana in Kenya to serve the East African Market, he added.

Concluding on behalf of the board, he pledged to continue to guide management through effective supervision and direction to enhance shareholder values and meet the interest of all relevant stakeholders.

The Deputy finance Minister, John kumah on his part, charged the newly reconstituted board to use the African Continental Free Trade agreement as a tool to expand its frontiers.

He also urged the board to embark on expansionary drive into targeted market in Africa to grow its premium income especially in the face of AFCFTA.

Ghana Re is a “home-grown” successful reinsurance company in Ghana with over 48 years’ experience in reinsurance business with a proven track record of providing world-class reinsurance services to local and international markets.

CFI, Sunday Thomas speech at the launch of R3Lab in Lagos

REMARKS BY MR. O. S. THOMAS, COMMISSIONER FOR INSURANCE (NIGERIA) AT THE LAUNCH OF RISK, RESILIENCE AND REGULATORY LAB (R3LAB) LAUNCH, AT FOUR POINTS BY SHERATON, VICTORIA ISLAND, LAGOS ON 30TH MARCH 2022

I am pleased to welcome you to the Launch of the Risk, Resilience and Regulatory Laboratory (R3Lab).

This event was conceived by our development partners, Financial Sector Deepening Africa (FSD Africa) funded by UK Aid. The setting up of the R3Lab was given impetus by our mutual interest in maximizing the untapped potential of the African insurance industry and exploring ways in which collaboration, technology and insurance supervisory capacity building is capable of not only mitigating the impact of specific challenges experienced in the regulatory environment but also improve the regulatory effectiveness of African insurance supervisory authorities.

We are all aware of the evolving risks in the Africa economic space such as climate change, pandemics, digitalization, inadequate understanding and lack of confidence in the insurance sector and the need for new strategies to enhance the capabilities of African insurance supervisory authorities to effectively regulate and protect insurance policyholders.

The R3Lab offers a three-tiered approach towards creating an enabling regulatory environment and equipping the regulator with sound, proportionate and fit-for-purpose practices.

Risk, Resilience, and Regulation are the key entry points for the R3Lab to build the technical capacity and skills of the regulator on innovation and sustainable insurance. The R3Lab will facilitate the design of customized capacity-building programs and set up peer to peer exchange platforms, comprehensive learning toolkits, a resource center for data collection and reporting and topical taskforces and forums for insurance supervisors in Africa.

I am pleased to confirm that this platform is the third joint-initiative that has been birthed through FSD Africa’s partnership with NAICOM. The first was FSD Africa’s ongoing support in the review of existing regulations including identifying and articulating the key steps, framework(s), and tools required by NAICOM for Risk-Based Capital (RBC). This will enable NAICOM fully implement a scalable RBC Framework in Nigeria as well as to help it develop an innovation framework for NAICOM to fulfill its dual objectives of market development and policyholders’ protection.

It is also gratifying to state that, FSD Africa in furtherance of its support to NAICOM and the Nigerian insurance industry, we officially launched the second project, the BimaLab Insurtech Accelerator in February 2022. The platform selects, coaches and mentors insurtech firms, granting these firms access to FSD Africa BimaLab Grant Fund in developing innovative business solutions focusedon solving compelling economic or social problems. I understand ten (10) selected participants are already undergoing 10 (ten) weeks intensive mentorship and coaching. Let me, on behalf of the Management and staff of the National Insurance Commission, express our sincere gratitude to FSD Africa for the invaluable support.

It is my hope that through the commissioning of these projects and platforms, we create an enabling environment for the development of insurance products which address the day-to-day challenges experienced by Nigerians in the face of environmental related risks. Availability of better products is likely to result in better service delivery and increase financial returns to investors. In recognition of this, NAICOM aims to achieve greater public trust and confidence in the insurance sector through “Innovation, Distribution and Effective/Efficient Service Delivery” which has been the cornerstone of our strategic focus and actions.

I wish to conclude my remarks by thanking you all once again for joining us as we mark this new milestone in Africa’s path towards achieving a more resilient insurance sector which will inevitably improve the standard of living of Africans and entrench sustainability in businesses

I thank you for your attention.

FSD Africa, Naicom join hands to move African insurance sector forward

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

The Financial Sector Deepening Africa (FSD Africa) funded by UK Aid in collaboration with the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) on Wednesday launched an initiative to improve Africa’s insurance industry.

The initiative is the Risk, Resilience and Regulatory Laboratory (R3Lab), launched in Lagos.

The Commissioner for Insurance/CEO, NAICOM,  Mr Sunday Thomas, said that the R3Lab was set up to explore ways in which collaboration, technology and insurance supervisory capacity building can improve regulatory effectiveness of Africa’s insurance industry.

Thomas said that collaboration, technology and insurance supervisory were capable of mitigating the impact of specific challenges experienced in the regulatory environment .

” We are all aware of the evolving risks in the African economic space such as climate change, pandemics, digitalisation, inadequate understanding and lack of confidence in the insurance sector.

“Also, the need for new strategies to enhance the capabilities of African insurance supervisory authorities to effectively regulate and protect insurance policyholders.

“We are all aware of the evolving risks in the Africa economic space such as climate change, pandemics, digitalisation, inadequate understanding and lack of confidence in the insurance sector and the need for new strategies to enhance the capabilities of African insurance supervisory authorities to effectively regulate and protect insurance policyholders,” he said.

Thomas posited that the R3Lab offers a three-tiered approach towards creating an enabling regulatory environment and equipping the regulator with sound, proportionate and fit-for-purpose practices.

Risk, Resilience, and Regulation, he said are the key entry points for the R3Lab to build the technical capacity and skills of the regulator on innovation and sustainable insurance.

According to him, “The R3Lab will facilitate the design of customised capacity-building programs and set up peer to peer exchange platforms, comprehensive learning toolkits, a resource center for data collection and reporting and topical taskforces and forums for insurance supervisors in Africa.”

“I am pleased to confirm that this platform is the third joint-initiative that has been birthed through FSD Africa’s partnership with NAICOM.

“The first was FSD Africa’s ongoing support in the review of existing regulations including identifying and articulating the key steps, framework(s), and tools required by NAICOM for Risk-Based Capital (RBC).

“This will enable NAICOM fully implement a scalable RBC Framework in Nigeria as well as to help it develop an innovation framework for NAICOM to fulfill its dual objectives of market development and policyholders’ protection,” Thomas posited.

Thomas on behalf of the Management and staff of the National Insurance Commission, expressed sincere gratitude to FSD Africa for the invaluable support.

He expressed hope that through the commissioning of these projects and platforms, will create an enabling environment for the development of insurance products which address the day-to-day challenges experienced by Nigerians in the face of environmental related risks.

He maintained that availability of better products is likely to result in better service delivery and increase financial returns to investors, adding that in recognition of this, NAICOM aims to achieve greater public trust and confidence in the insurance sector through “Innovation, Distribution and Effective/Efficient Service Delivery” which has been the cornerstone of its strategic focus and actions

Also, t he Chief Executive Officer, FSD Africa, Mark Napier, stated at the launch of the Risk, Resilience and Regulatory Laboratory (R3Lab) initiative in Lagos, stressing that the firm believes healthy financial markets are the foundation of a fair and thriving economy.

He noted that the firm supports breakthrough ideas that will transform Africa’s financial markets, and deliver programmes where the potential for impact is greatest.

He maintained that Africa can unlock new pathways to prosperity and resilience, while helping the world realise the promise of the Paris Agreement and tackle the dual crises of climate change and biodiversity loss.

“We believe that a financial system that is acceptable, stable and transparent, can also help to create the condition for a fair and sustainable future,” he submitted.