The President of the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), Mrs Ekeoma Ezeibe, has urged Nigeria’s insurance sector to take a more prominent role in the country’s development by financing, de-risking and sustaining critical infrastructure.
She made the call at the opening of the 2026 National Insurance Brokers Conference and Exhibition in Abuja, where she said insurers could no longer limit themselves to reacting to risks after they occur.
According to her, the industry should actively help mobilise long-term capital for projects such as roads, railways, power facilities, ports, digital networks and climate-resilient infrastructure needed to drive a $1 trillion economy.
Ezeibe described the conference theme, “Insurance: Infrastructure Financing and National Agenda,” as a practical call to action rather than a mere slogan.
She said recent reforms, particularly the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act 2025, had given the sector a stronger and more modern legislative foundation.
She also cited the National Insurance Commission’s targets under the Insurance Sector Strengthening Programme, which seek to raise insurance penetration from 0.5 per cent of GDP to 1.5 per cent by 2028 and 10 per cent by 2031, while extending coverage to 25 million Nigerians, especially women, youths and small businesses.
Ezeibe explained that well-structured insurance products, including construction all-risks cover, political risk insurance, delay-in-start-up cover, professional indemnity, performance bonds, surety, climate and catastrophe covers, and parametric solutions, could make infrastructure projects more attractive to investors.
Such products, she said, could attract private capital, reduce borrowing costs, protect public finances and ensure that infrastructure assets are properly built and maintained.
She noted that insurance brokers occupy a strategic position between project sponsors, lenders, contractors, operators and insurers, and should therefore strengthen their expertise in infrastructure-related risks.
Ezeibe also encouraged brokers to retain more infrastructure risks within Nigeria instead of transferring them abroad, adopt digital and parametric solutions, and push for strong insurance requirements in public-private partnership contracts and projects at state and local government levels.
She outlined the NCRIB’s “One Insurance Industry” agenda, which focuses on expanding insurance penetration, starting with a pilot in Abia State; completing the Olola Olabode Ogunlana House; deepening cooperation with NAICOM and other regulators; improving members’ professional capacity; and mentoring younger brokers.
Also speaking at the event, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Prof. Taiwo Oyedele, urged insurers to support infrastructure development by de-risking projects and directing long-term capital into national priorities.
He said successful economies depend on effective project de-risking, access to productive capital and development that delivers tangible improvements in people’s lives.