By Patience Sghana
National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has warned against the collisions of seminars, workshops and training emanating from almost all arms of the insurance sector just as the commission had asked that the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigerian (CIIN) be allowed to organise and coordinate training programme for sanity and unity of purpose to prevail.

Mr Fola Daniel, Commissioner for Insurance in Lagos last weekend, pleaded with the Nigerian Insurers Association, Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers and others to desist from recycling seminars in the sector over and again.

Daniel who addressed a good number of insurance chief executives at a one day seminar on oil and gas for Managing Directors and Heads of Special Risks of insurance companies in a keynote address, persuaded other arms of the industry to discontinue the knack for recycling training topics and resource persons in the industry at the detriment of participants who are tired of the numerous training programmes being churned out from the various arms in the sector.

According to him, “The novelty in this seminar is the synergy between NAICOM and CIIN. Permit me to mention at this stage that this seminar is being anchored by the CIIN but fully funded by NAICOM.

The arrangement is deliberate and borne out of a desire to lead the insurance industry into effective utilisation of our umbrella training body and the education arm of the industry, the CIIN, for coordinating and superintending the insurance industry conferences, seminars and workshops, as against the divisive endeavours by the various arms of the industry”

NAICOM boss explained that the clashes of training arrangement would not only allow for easy collation of the results of various brainstorming sessions but would equally portray the industry as focused and strategic.

The CIIN is the premier professional organisation for those working in the insurance and financial services industry. The institute is dedicated to promoting higher standards of competence and integrity through the provision of relevant qualifications for employees at all levels and across all sectors of the industry.

The aim and objectives of the CIN are as contained in the Enabling Law, Act 22 of 1993 and include among others, determining the standards of knowledge and skill to be attained by persons seeking to become registered members of the insurance profession whilst it reviews those standards from time to time.

Insurance industry in a year, organised over 13 training programmes under the name of seminars, workshops etc for which participants cough out between N15, 000 to N60, 000 depending on the venue and other incentives put together and at the end of the day, the training programme add little or no value to the supposed beneficiaries whilst the organisers’ bottom-line is hinged on profit.
The commission seemed to have saved operators from the wastages of those training programme as the regulator made a promise to henceforth partly sponsor training programmes organised and coordinated by the CIIN.

He however urged all arms of the industry to learn from the Nigerian Local Content Act for which all the arms of the sector made inputs in unison.

“For the first time, all the arms of the insurance industry spoke with one voice which is the resultant effect of the provisions in the Act that the industry is savouring today”.

Meanwhile, a good number of insurance chief executives were in attendance due to the letter, Financial Vanguard gathered, they received from NAICOM making it compulsory for every CEO of insurance companies to be in attendance