My Priority is to Sanitise Agency System in Nigeria – Obuvie

Mr. Kingsley Obuvie is the new President, Association of Registered Insurance Agents of Nigeria (ARIAN).

Mr. Kingsley Obuvie is the new President, Association of Registered Insurance Agents of Nigeria (ARIAN). In this interview with LEO ALIGWO, he says one of his major objectives is to redefine the insurance agency system in Nigeria amidst ensuring that unlicensed agents were wiped out of business. He also insists that ARIAN is a stronger force for grassroot insurance marketing and awareness creation. Excerpts

As the new president of ARIAN, could you briefly tell us your mission?

My mission is to redefine the insurance agency system in Nigeria because in the past most agents were not well educated, not well informed about: their duties and obligations as agents. As a body we want to ensure that we have law enforcement, we want professional agents who are law abiding. All over the world, agents are known for bringing business and comfort to the insurance companies. My mission specifically is to redefine the role of insurance agents in Nigeria, I believe I can achieve that with the support of most insurance companies and the regulator; National Insurance Commission (NAICOM).

What are your immediate priorities?

My immediate priorities are first and foremost to have more agents licensed in Nigeria. Unfortunately, we have few agents who are licenced. We have a lot of fake agents who are just doing business without abiding by the law. My immediately mission is to ensure that the agents have license to operate as insurance agents in Nigeria. Secondly, to educate and inform them about their duties and rights as agents, because most of them are myopic, small minded as intermediaries to the growth of insurance industry. Whatever the insurance brokers are doing today, the insurance agents can do the same. We have a large number to even communicate to the insurance industry much better. So, my immediate priority is first and foremost to sensitise them about their right and duties and ensure that they doing what they are suppose to do under the law.

Some of your members are not well exposed about what they are suppose to do in the insurance industry as agent, what measures are you taking to educate them about insurance agency business?

As we have plans to organise a lot of workshops and seminars next year in collaboration with insurance companies that wants to partner with ARAN to ensure that they have a better working agency system; our mission is to send them on workshops by the first quarter of 2010.

Have you mapped out strategies to achieve these objectives?

Specifically, we are looking at between February and March 2010 for our first seminar/workshop for insurance agents all over the country. We need to revive most of our branche network, presently Lagos is the only branch that is alive for now so, we need to go to all the branches, and the first port of call is the 'Federal Capital Territory Abuja which is the seat of power. Apart from the proposal seminar and workshop we need and establish our station presence in Abuja and from there we will move to other states of the federation.

What informed your decision to choose Abuja as your first port of call.?

Abuja is the seat of power and I'm aware we have a lot of agents there. Also, almost all the insurance companies have agency network in Abuja, we can't be operating in an environment with the exclusion of Abuja, capital of. Nigeria Certainly I think Abuja is where I think we should start from but fortunately we have 80 per cent of the insurance businesses in Lagos, and that is why we are doing' Lagos first after which we would move to Abuja and from there we will go to other places.

After Abuja where next?

We will move to Port-Harcourt which is the rich oil city and also located in the eastern part of the country.

Precisely how much will this programme cost your association?

It is costing us a lot of money as I said earlier but we want to partner with a lot of insurance companies and I believe when we call on them they will answer us. They have been supporting us. Above all, we believe that NAICOM with the MDRI in place which the commission wants us to establish in our various chapters, without ARIAN, you cannot regulate the agents. So, ARIAN is to work with NAICOM to ensure that all agents in Nigeria are regulated like the NCRIB, NIA among other professional bodies so that together we can form a formidable force and move the industry forward.

Our resource persons for the planned workshop/seminar would be drawn from NAICOM because that is the hub of our business presently, after that we will consider other regulatory bodies that want to partner with us. If you want to build a house, you should start from the foundation and NAICOM is a regulatory body and as far as I'm concerned it is the foundation of insurance industry in Nigeria today that is why we want to start with them, but we welcome other partners who wants to support the insurance agency growth in Nigeria today.

Have you consulted NAICOM formerly regarding ARIAN dreamed projects in 2010?

We have done so, but our commission is aware of our activities and it has been supporting us, and I want to believe that they will continue to support us in all our activities even as we continue to move forward. NAICOM believe that under the MDRI programme ARIAN is a strong force to use for grassroot insurance market.

The commission believe that effective with partnership with ARIAN the targeted N1.10 trillion market in 2012 would be achieved.

ARIAN has packaged a nice programme for its members early 2010, are you sure the lofty dream will not be hijacked by quacks in the industry?

You are already aware that NAICOM has set up a task force to check the activities of fakes in the insurance industry in Nigeria. We are in partnership with the commission to ensure that the perennial societal problem is eradicated so long as we can gather our members together, we will put them in all the strategic areas where the illegal activities are being perpetuated. For instance, we have the seaports where the fake marine insurance certificates are being issued to unsuspecting innocent members of the public. I believe there is need to sensitize our members by letting them know that they should not allow insurance touts and other unregistered group of people masquerading as insurance agents to hijack their business and mess it up, because it will work against what they are supposed to benefit from the industry. What we want to do is that, as we go along educating our members, we will tell them to position themselves in local governments, and in all the key areas where insurance certificates is being bought, so, that is where the problem is. So, I'm sure that with the support of NAICOM we will achieve that. Already, the task force is here with us I want to believe that NAICOM will include ARIAN in that task force.

Have you been able to ascertain the exact member of registered insurance agents in Nigeriia?

Well, as at last 1.000 registered agents in the country, but presently I think we have about 700 registered agents. The problem is that currently we have more than 15.000 agents working in Nigeria. That is a big gap so, we want to ensure that all our members are working under the law. Between now and December 2010 I want to believe that we will have over 10 registered agents. They have been given a lot of share copies, they are already doing certificates for their agents, I understand the first body they have deal with in the Chartered Institute of Insurance of Nigeria (CIIN) and there, they have to go after NAICOM to get the licence.

A lot companies have already done so and more will join the queue. NAICOM is presently waiting for urgent positive result in this direction. So, I'm sure that very soon the issue of fake insurance agents will be wiped out.

What is the attraction of fake agents in the insurance business hence some retired Army majors and school dropouts are involved in illegal marketing of insurance certificates.?

The attraction is the commission, the money they will make, but the truth is that as an agent your income is unlimited, you can earn so much money. I have been an agent for over 19 years and today I'm proud to be an agent, we have seen agents who have built houses, who ride better cars living comfortable. So, the attraction is the quantum of income, they are making. We have insurance companies operating in Nigeria today but for the agents, these companies will not survive. So it is the huge income that attracts a lot of people to insurance business. However, it is important that we operate strictly by the law.

What is ARIAN doing to ensure that insurance agents speak with one voice at all times on issues affecting them.?

Well essentially you have to let people know what you have in stock for them, and people die because of lack of knowledge. Before now, we didn't have a formidable association as a symbol to work towards the progress of the agents in Nigeria. But today we have an association and the major thing that the association wants to do is to promote the image of the agents, and defend them against their rights(welfare) and any marginalisation in the insurance industry and the public in general. I intend to visit all insurance companies and agencies so that we can work as one, we can have one common voice. ARIAN has come to stay to represent the agency as one common voice, this is what we lack before now and that is what we are trying to do right now, and that is why I said that my major aim is to defend the agency system.

In Asian countries and other parts of the globe, they have associations even shoe makers and brick layers and other professional bodies have association. So if we do not have an association that bind us together as one body, it becomes a problem. That is why! I'm calling on all insurance agents in Nigeria to support us so that we succeed, so that we can have on voice, and create a better image for the agency system in Nigeria.

Aside the proposed workshop/seminar, when exactly do you intend to execute these programmes you have so far listed?

From the workshop on MDRI we have representative from at least 15 insurance companies representing 50 per cent of all insurance companies in Nigeria, and that is our goal. As far as we have representatives from all the insurance companies, we believe they will pass the message across. Also, we are going to have a council where all the insurance agency would be represented with at least two representatives. This will enhance better discrimination of information to all agents, we have already started the work, we just need to do more in addition to what we are presently doing.

I can assure you that within the first half of next year, we would have achieved more than what we recorded currently.

How prepared is your association to embraced the challenges of agency system in 2010.?

For us, we will try to be proactive as much as possible, look at issues as it affects our members to ensure that it does not jeopardise our common interest. Whatever NAICOM is putting in place is right now, is in the common interest of the industry, so from my own point of view, we will look at how the issue concern our members. So far, the initiative created by NAICOM does not affect the agency system more, it is even enhancing the agency system to be a better system. If they are planning to create over N250,000 jobs, of course that is a very good initiative, t will even help the economy to grow. So, the challenges and the fact that we have a lot of fake agents who are not registered, we cannot continue to operate that way. The challenge before us now is to ensure that every agent working in Nigeria must have a license . I want to believe that once they have license. We will not have challenges; because the companies will continue to create more products, more initiatives to improve the market further than what it is presently on the ground.

One of the conditions spelt out by NAICOM for establishment of insurance agency is acquisition of license. What other grey areas do you think that is working against the interest of ARIAN?

I'm happy that NAICOM is giving us that recognition now that agency system was neglected. I believe the new development will help us to inform us about their activities and carry us along in all that they doing in the industry now. When the people are informed, that will augur well for the industry.

The major grey area for now is that a lot of agents are operating illegally, and that is not right for a country and the insurance industry, we have to check mate this, that is why you have a lot of deficiencies or problems, you have agents who are fraudulent and that is what we are going to look into. This is why we believe that issue of licensing is very important as far as moving forward is concerned.

Do you think that the timing of the MDRI workshop organised for insurance brokers and agents by NAICOM is appropriate.?

It is very appropriate. It could have come at any other time but now group by the analysis given by the resource person at the workshop, we have the largest population premium. So it is very timing even though we have economic recession, we believe that in lot of issues concerning insurance in Nigeria have been addressed we need to have more of this workshop in other states and or environment so that more awareness will be created.

Do you think that insurance agents have not been doing enough in terms of creation of awareness about the relevance of insurance industry in Nigeria.?

Well, part of the problem have been absence in debt product knowledge and skills, technical know ho. A lot of insurance agents and brokers operating in Nigeria are after making money for themselves, they are not after customer service and service delivery. You know the customers is the king. If you treat the customer well, he will give you so much business but when you are only interested in what you will get from him/her, rather than service it becomes a problem. So, I think moving forward, all the insurance agents and brokers must think of the customer first, look for products that will satisfy the customer and not product that will satisfy themselves. That is why we should be moving forward to product development so that we can satisfy the customer is the king. People have regard for the insurance industry because of the services they derive from insurance and not because it is compulsory. I believe if the customers see the service and the benefit of the products that on its own will be a very good image restoration for the industry. It will also attract more customers because if you treat one customer very well, he will sing your song and tell others, oh this insurance firm is good, their product is, good, this agent is good. I think moving forward has to do with how satisfied the customer is, because the customer is the king.

What kind of product should the insurance companies design to attract patronage by the insuring public.?

A lot of product presently are being designed by insurance companies to ensure that the customer gets satisfaction, i.e both life products and non life products, very friendly products that will assist the customer because it is meant to indemnity your gains and lost either life or property or whatever it is. I know that a lot of companies are designing products that will enhance the customers satisfaction. This is what I know for now. Infact the truth of the matter is that a lot of clients don't know their right when it comes to product benefit. If a customer gets a product he should try and study know what the product is all about. The products being designed now is in all the areas that will make the environment better for us including property.

Furthermore, if we have members who speak with one voice and act in utmost good faith, I'm sure, we will create awareness because the agents are in the grassroots they are at the various communities, organisations and in every sector of the economy. So, that is the first instrument we want to use let our agents go out there and speak the truth of course, we also intend to use the press to create that awareness as much as possible with the support of the press we should be able to achieve that on a long run.

In your own opinion, what does the future hold for the insurance industry in Nigeria.?

The future is very bright for the insurance industry in Nigeria provided all stakeholders in the industry will come together as a team; united we stand, divided we fall. That is one of the greatest problems that is militating against the growth of insurance industry in Nigeria today. If we continue the house will be divided against itself insurance industry will not grow. For now our greatest weapon is he market place agreement that used to address issues that is hindering insurance growth in Nigeria. If that market agreement ca be reached and implemented, I believe the future will be very bright for insurance industry in Nigeria.

The industry is under utilized, we should stop the division among the stakeholders. All stake holders should come together as one voice to protected the image of insurance industry in the country to enable us achieve the same goal.