Insurance companies must diversify business operations – GLICO Group CEO

Insurance companies must diversify their businesses to still remain in business despite the bite of COVID-19 on the Ghanaian and global economy, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GLICO Group, Mr Edward Forkuo Kyei, has said.

Speaking at the 4th Webinar series on the effect of COVID-19 on Corporate Ghana and the Insurance Industry, Mr Kyei said though the Coronavirus pandemic had hit hard on the Ghanaian insurance industry, it has also spawned businesses which insurance companies could tap to remain in business and boost their revenues. 

The programme which was organized by Krif Ghana Limited, publishers of the Integrity Magazine, was on the theme “Effects of COVID-19 on Corporate Ghana- the Insurance industry.” 

The event brought together seasoned insurers across the country, who   took turns to explain the present and future prospects and outlook of the insurance industry.

They are the Deputy Commissioner of the National Insurance Commission, Mr Michael Kofi Andoh, the Managing Director of Enterprise Insurance Company Limited, Madam Ernestina Abeh, and the Chief Executive Officer, GLICO Group- Mr Edward Forkuo Kyei,

The rest included the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Nationwide Medical Insurance, Mrs Nancy Ampah, the  Managing Director, WAPIC Insurance Ghana, Mr Adedayo Arowojolu and the Vice President of the Insurance Brokers Association of Ghana who is also the CEO of KEK Reinsurance Brokers (Africa) Limited, Mr Shaibu Ali.

Mr Kyei in his address suggested that insurance companies could venture into establishing vehicle repairs companies to attend to their policyholders’ vehicles.

 By so doing, he said insurance companies would retain control of the repairs of customers’ vehicles and maintain a high level of service delivery to customers, adding that this would also help them to reduce the cost of operations and generate additional incomes to improve their revenues.

The GLICO CEO said COVID-19 had opened the doors for the use of various technologies to conduct virtual meetings, which are as effective as face-to-face meetings. 

“These turbulent times may very well be the turning point that will drive transformational change across the insurance industry,” he said.

The CEO of KEK Reinsurance Brokers (Africa) Limited, Shaibu Ali, entreated insurance brokers to carefully assess the commercial implications of the pandemic on their clients.

The Managing Director of Enterprise Insurance Company Limited, Madam Ernestina Abeh, said the country’s general insurance industry had not been plagued with “large claims from the pandemic” as compared to western markets. 

In his address, the CEO of Krif Ghana Limited and Editor of the Integrity Magazine, Reverend Kennedy Okosun, urged insurance companies to do more in building trust with its stakeholders.

“In this COVID-19 era, a well-developed insurance industry is a requisite necessity in the efforts to improve the stability of the financial markets and protect individuals and businesses from losses in these difficult times of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The world economy has seen a downward spiral since the pandemic broke out and as usual”, Rev Okosun said, adding that “ the insurance industry in Ghana has  been impacted adversely adding there have been fears the COVID-19 situation could begin to create liquidity strains even for insurers.

BY NORMAN COOPER