The Federal Ministry of Finance has said that the under-performance of the insurance sector has denied the country of an annual 1.5 per cent increment in Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Its Minister, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, dropped the hint at the 2016 National Insurance Conference (NIC) held in Abuja on Tuesday.
Adeosun explained that the persistent under-performance of the sector came to the fore during the 2014 Insurance Summit.
According to her, the issues responsible for the under-performance need was because a 0. 33 per cent increase in insurance penetration could result to a growth of 0.5 per cent in GDP.
The minister said that the increment could create over 70,000 jobs annually. Adeosun argued that the industry was under-performing, compared to its pension and banking counterparts.
She identified a lack of awareness as one of the factors responsible for the under-performance of the sector, stressing that out of 57 insurance companies in the country, less than 23 advertised their products.
The minister added: “The companies put in less than 20 adverts on television, less than 10 adverts on radio and less than 10 adverts on social media.
“Other factors include poor distribution channels and unethical practices among operators. I’m working vigorously with the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to ensure that premium discounting is eliminated among practitioners.
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