New Products Dev: Regency Alliance Sets Up Committee

Determined to increase its stake in the vast insurance market, Regency Alliance Insurance has set up an arrow-head committee on innovative products development.
In a statement by the Group Managing Director, Mr. Biyi Otegbeye, he said the insurance market of today can only be won by creativity.
One area he stressed to expand, apart from its present market share, was increasing the size of its market which would seek to convert non-users, increased usage rate and an enlarged platform of insurance users.
The need to evolve new products development, he said was borne out of the fact that insurance practice in Nigeria was mainly hinged on the compulsory insurance which people take because the law states so.
Otegbeye said the idea is intended “to move insurance products to a stage that they would add value to people's lives and businesses rather than depending on law that force people to buy”.  
He decried the low rate of development of insurance, despite the vast opportunities that exist in Nigeria.  He said “it is disheartening that in spite of the size of our population and the level of development, insurance penetration is still very low.”
He added that a lot of precarious situations such as stress, bankruptcy and even death could have been avoided if insurance policy had been taken earlier by them.
While commending the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) for its innovative efforts, especially in public enlightenment, the insurance executive said the products development would go the entire gamut of the society.
As an attestation to the low level of insurance development, Mr. Otegbeye said Nigeria's share of the world market was only 0.01percent.  On the other hand, South Africa which was thrice less than Nigeria in population records a premium income of about $40.70billion, representing 0.86 percent of global market.