AfDB awards $140,000 to 25 finalists from 14 African countries on AgriPitch competition

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

Twenty-five youth-led agriculture sector companies from 14 African countries have advanced to the finalist round of the African Development Bank Group’s 2022 AgriPitch Competition to award $140,000 in grants and business skills training.

The Bank, in collaboration with the implementing lead Private Equity Support and partner organizations Eldohub and the Private Finance Advisory Network, announced the 25 finalists for the Competition that will award $140,000 in grants and business skills training.

The 25 finalists include 17 women-owned or led small and medium enterprises. Thirteen are from Francophone countries, while the other 12 are from Anglophone countries.

The AgriPitch Competition targets African youth aged 18 to 35 years working in the agricultural value chain. The 25 finalists will receive training to build business skill capacity with the requisite tools and knowledge to bolster their investor readiness, financial management, and help them pitch bankable business proposals.

These young agripreneurs show great potential and are a testament to the level of innovation that exists across Africa. The Bank’s support, through the AgriPitch Competition, will boost the bankability of these projects and provide a tangible step towards enhancing agribusiness and food security on the continent,” said Edson Mpyisi, the Bank’s Chief Financial Economist and ENABLE Youth Coordinator.

The Competition received over 1,000 applications from African “agripreneurs,” including around 250 entries from women-owned or led small and medium enterprises.

“It’s reassuring to see and evaluate hundreds of great potential investment opportunities from across the region,” said Diana Gichaga, Managing Partner at Private Equity Support.

“It reaffirms the crucial role that the agricultural sector plays in the African economy and the continued efforts to bring these initiatives to the fore through platforms such as the AgriPitch Competition,” she added.

The AgriPitch Competition is a central and recurring activity of the African Development Bank’s ENABLE Youth Program, sponsored by the Youth Entrepreneurship and Innovation Trust Fund of the Bank.

The 2022 edition will award three start-up categories: Early start-ups (0-3 years of operation), Mature start-ups (3 or more years in operation) and Women-empowered businesses (firms with at least 51% share of women ownership or founded by a woman).

The finalists will pitch their business plans to potential investors in the AgriPitch deal room and be eligible for one-on-one mentorship as well as access to post-competition digital expertise.

Click here to watch the video announcement of the 25 finalists for the 2022 AgriPitch Competition, using this access code: .51E*7M.

SanlamLife promises better service delivery

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

Sanlam Life Restates Commitment to Deliver Excellent Services Salami Life Insurance Nigeria Limited, formerly FBNInsurance, has reassured it’s teeming clients of excellent service delivery this new year

The Managing Director/CEO of the company, Tunde Mimiko, gave the assurance in anew year message sent to customers and partners via the company’s email channel and social media handles. Mimiko appreciated the customers for their unflinching support throughout year 2022despite the economic challenges.

He assured the customers of the company’s renewed vigour and greater capacity to add value to them in the new year.”As our valued customer, our full integration into the amazing Sanlam family assures you of best-in-class services across our touch points nationwide. We are here to aid your life journey and help you live with confidence,” Mimiko said.

“Our doors are wide open and we have various channels through which you can reach us. We will always be glad to listen to you, work and walk with you,” he added.

Sanlam is a pan-African brand with a rich history and heritage. Founded in 1918 as a life insurance company, Sanlam has grown to become the largest non-banking financial services group in Africa.With a strong presence in 33 countries on the African continent, and a niche presence iin India, Malaysia, the United Kingdom and Australia, Sanlam is in eight out of the 10largest economies in Africa, with a market capitalization of over $8bn, operating profit of$1b before tax and over 154,000 employees globally, delivering superior value to customers, shareholders and the broader society

Germany: Minister vows swift punishment of perpetrators of New Year’s Eve riots

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

Germany’s Minister of the Interior, Nancy Faeser, has called for quick sentences of perpetrators of the New Year’s Eve riots in several German cities, including Berlin, Hamburg, Bonn, Dortmund and Essen.

During a visit to a fire station in the Berlin district of Neukölln, Ms Faeser stated that juvenile offenders should immediately feel a quick legal consequence of their actions and be made to realise that the state was capable of acting.

She also spoke out in favour of improved social work in day-care centres and schools.

Faeser visited the Neukölln fire station with the Governing Mayor of Berlin, Franziska Giffey, and spoke with emergency personnel who were on duty on New Year’s Eve. Faeser called it a “disgusting kind of criminality” by young people when, for example, firefighters were lured into an ambush.

Regarding the debate on failed integration biographies, Faeser said that it must be addressed. “It would not be right to conceal the migration background of perpetrators,” she said. “But it would also be wrong to misuse this for political discussions.”

Germans have expressed outrage following the New Year’s Eve rioting and attacks on emergency personnel in Berlin and other cities. There were reports of rockets, firecrackers and even a starting pistol being fired at emergency vehicles. Forty-one police officers were hurt in Berlin alone, according to media reports.

The majority of the 145 people detained during the Berlin riots, according to the police, were men. Of those detained, 45 were German nationals (mostly of foreign origin), 27 were of Afghan nationality and 21 were Syrians. Leading conservative politician Jens Spahn blamed unregulated migration and poor integration for the riots, sparking a larger discussion.

Meanwhile, an organisation of journalists with a migration background has criticised the German media for the way they are reporting on the incidents.

“We observe with concern how much force the reporting on New Year’s Eve has intensified, with journalistic due diligence sometimes falling by the wayside. The tendency to focus on the (alleged) origin of the perpetrators or their parents fuels prejudices, prevents a proper analysis and obscures the view of possible solutions,” the New German Media Practitioners (Neuen deutschen Medienmacher*innen e.V.) said in a press statement, warning against stigmatisation.

“Of course, the events of New Year’s Eve must be reported and their causes researched. In doing so, allegations and conclusions should be covered by a secure data basis and not be based on speculation,” the organisation said.

“A (supposed) ‘migration background’ as an explanation for crimes or problems leads to the false conclusion of ethnicising crime. In most cases, other factors are decisive, such as age, gender, economic situation, social milieus in which people with a migration history are statistically more strongly represented. If in big cities half of the young men have a so-called migration background and the incidents are predominantly started by young men, it is hardly surprising that among the perpetrators there are often people who are read as migrants. To omit these contexts is a violation of journalistic due diligence.

Insurance industry in Cameroon sees premiums grow by 8.7% in 2021

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

The insurance market in Cameroon saw premiums rise by 8.70 percent to FCFA229.8bn ($367.3m) from FCFA211.43bn generated in 2020, according to the Association of Insurance Companies of Cameroon (ASAC) in its 2021 annual report.

At 0.9 percent, the insurance penetration rate in Cameroon remained low in 2021.

By segment, the non-life insurance market posted premiums of FCFA152.56bn, representing 66.4 percent of the total. The segment grew by 8.4 percent or FCFA11.79bn in 2021, compared to 2020. The growth was attributed mainly to the Accident & Illness and Motor Liability categories, which alone had an increase of FCFA11.98bn in premiums compared to 2020.

Life companies, on the other hand, contributed 33.62 percent of total premiums in 2021, reporting a premium income of FCFA77.27bn in 2021.

With FCFA21.5bn in premium income representing 14.11 percent of the non-life segment, AXA was the largest insurer, followed by Activa Assurance (11.30%) and Chanas Assurances (10.65%). .

In life insurance, the top two companies (Allianz and Prudential Beneficial Life) alone accounted for half (49.93%) of the turnover.

There are 27 insurance companies operating in Cameroon, comprising 17 non-life and 10 in life insurers.

 

Ghanaian insurance regulator increase  motor third-party liability insurance tariffs

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

Ghanaian insurance regulator, the National Insurance Commission (NIC), has implemented motor third-party liability insurance tariff hikes of around 43 percent that which all insurers are mandated to comply with effective January 1, 2023.

Given that the third-party liability insurance tariffs are a factor in determining comprehensive insurance premiums, vehicle owners also face an increase in motor comprehensive insurance premiums as well.

The Consumer Protection Agency (CPA) has strongly opposed the increases, Business Ghana. Mr Kofi Owusu , popularly known as Kofi Kapito, CPA chairman, says that the NIC failed to engage stakeholders in the sector to decide on the increments. According to him, there is no justification for the upward adjustment in insurance premiums.

He adds that “broader consultations were not done and would have reduced the amount that they are asking us to pay”. He called on the NIC to withhold the implementation of the tariff hikes and carry out proper consultation and education.

NIC says that the premium increases are aimed at safeguarding the financial health of motor insurance companies, so they can continue delivering value to customers.

In 2022, motor insurers in Ghana operated under difficult economic conditions. The costs of auto parts and materials, all imported, rose sharply during the year. Repair labour costs also surged due to the rising cost of living in the country.

In addition to increasing costs, insurers were confronted with significant losses in the value of investments. Typically, the returns on insurance company investments augment collected premiums for the settlement of claims. Losses on investments leave insurers in a difficult position with regard to their vital role in helping customers recover quickly from financial loss.

The new motor insurance tariff system for 2023 categorises vehicles into two groups based on the year of registration:

Group A: vehicles registered before 2020
Group B: vehicles registered from 2020 onwards

How much a vehicle owner pays as a premium depends on which group his vehicle falls in. Tariffs for Group A are lower than those for Group B. Previously, all private cars used for social and private commuting purposes paid the same tariff rate.

Ebele Nwachukwu is now REGIC MD/CEO

By Favour Nnabugwu
 
The Board of Directors of Royal Exchange General Insurance Company Limited, has appointed Mrs. Ebelechukwu Benedicta Nwachukwu as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (MD/CEO) of the company.
This follows the confirmation of her appointment by the industry regulator, the National Insurance Commission, (NAICOM).
Mrs. Ebele Nwachukwu assumed office December 1, 2022.
Announcing the appointment at a press conference in Lagos, the Chairman, Board of Directors, Prince Ike Chioke, said that Mrs. Ebele Nwachukwu, with her extensive experience and knowledge of the insurance industry, will seek to drive the continuous growth and profitability of the company and make the company a market leader in general insurance business in Nigeria.
According to the Chairman, “Ebele brings close to 3 decades of versatile and trusted experience to Royal Exchange General Insurance, with a track record of excellence and performance, having previously led two (2) insurance companies in Nigeria, and we are very confident in her ability to take the company to even greater heights”.
Speaking further, Prince Chioke said, “Ebele is expected to focus on our transformation agenda as we seek to diversify our business lines and focus on the retail insurance space. Royal Exchange General Insurance has a vision to attain and maintain market leadership in terms of profitability and excellent service. For us at the Board, we see Ebele as someone who can drive this vision, as we seek to be a top 3 general insurance firm in Nigeria. This is the goal and expectation of the investors and the Board, within the next 3-5 years.”
Prince Chioke added, “the Board would like to thank Mr. Benjamin Agili for his meritorious service to the Company. Mr. Agili will always be remembered for his leadership, service, dedication, and strong commitment to the company. Under his watch, the company has grown to be major player in the general insurance space in Nigeria and the Board thanks Mr. Agili for his services.
Mrs. Nwachukwu is a graduate of University of Benin, Edo State and obtained her master’s degree in Business Administration from the ESUT Business School. She is an Alumni of London Business School (Executive Education); London and The Columbia Business School, New York; and has attended Executive programmes at the Manchester and Lagos Business Schools.
She started her insurance career at International Standard Insurance in 1994 after the mandatory NYSC and spent an additional year with the firm before joining Standard Alliance Insurance Plc in 1996, as an Officer, Public Sector. She rose to the position of Assistant General Manager (AGM) before leaving in 2004 to join UBA Insurance Company as Deputy General Manager/Divisional Head, Retail and Channel Management with the task of running the Bancassurance Model with UBA Plc. She also had a stint at UBA Plc as Senior Manager/Head, Marketing – Cards Division.
Ebele left UBA Plc to join Zenith General Insurance as a Deputy General Manager (DGM) in 2007, was promoted to the position of General Manager (GM) in 2008 and later appointed the MD/CEO in the same year, leading the company to unprecedented growth in terms of revenue and profitability in the nine (9) years she spent as the Managing Director.
Mrs. Nwachukwu then assumed the leadership position of MD/CEO at NSIA Insurance in January 2018, where she led the business reengineering and transformation projects in the company. While at NSIA, her efforts led to a change in the company’s structure, culture and operations, leading to increased business patronage and was awarded the ‘Best Place to work’ in 2019. She left NSIA in May 2022 to pursue other personal interests.
A member of Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN); Ebele is also a member of the Institute of Directors, Nigeria, (IoD); Chartered Member of the Nigerian institute of Management (NIM) and a member of the Personal Finance Society, United Kingdom.
In the Nigerian Insurance Industry, Ebele has served in the following capacities: Member, Governing Council, Nigeria Insurers Association (NIA); Chairman, Publicity Sub-Committee of the Insurers Committee (NAICOM); Chairman, AIO Organizing Committee – AIO 2021, (hosted in Nigeria) and Chairman, NIA House Project.