Nigerians Drum Support For Tope Smart As AIO President
Mr. Tope Smart, incoming President of AIO
As the buildup to the 47th edition of the Conference and General Assembly of the African Insurance Organisation (AIO) continued to gather steam, stakeholders in the Nigerian insurance industry have thrown their weights behind the incoming President of the Pan-African Insurance body, Mr. Tope Smart.
Tope Smart is expected to take over from Delphine Traoré, Chief Operations Officer (COO) of Allianz Africa, who was appointed President of the African Insurance Organisation (AIO) at the closing ceremony of the 46th AIO annual general meeting held in Johannesburg from June 9 to 13, 2019.
Those who have already expressed their support for Tope Smart based on his experience include the President Emeritus, Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN), Chief Sunny Nwosu, Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), Mr. Tope Adaramola, The Deputy General Manager, Sales and Corporate Communications, Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc, Mr. Olusegun Bankole.
They made their views known in an interview with this medium on the forthcoming AIO General Assembly taking place in Lagos, Nigeria from September 4 through 8, 2021.
According to Chief Nwosu, “For me I think Tope Smart is very experienced coming a long way and bringing up Nem to where it is today, so with that background, I don’t think he will have too much problem as President of AIO.
It’s a matter of experience. He knows the Nigerian insurance industry inside out. AIO is a coordinating organ. The role of coordinating is the bringing up the Insurance industry in Anglophone and Francophone countries in Africa to work together. It’s definitely going to be a very tough job in coordinating this because of the jurisdictions. I believe that when they start looking at case studies, the Anglophone and the Francophone (French and English) there will be a value to be taken from there. But I strongly believe that Tope is capable of adding value to whatever he met on the ground,” Chief Nwosu said.
Also speaking, Executive Secretary/CEO, NCRIB, Tope Adaramola said, “It is very heartwarming that Nigeria is again given the opportunity of producing the President of AIO in the person of the Group Managing Director, Nem Insurance Plc, Mr. Tope Smart. As you are quite aware, Mr. Tope Smart has the required pedigree in the industry, having been a very strong player, Managing Director for close to twenty years, and Chairman of the Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA).
“In terms of professional contributions, he is not a man that the insurance industry in Nigeria can whisk away. Having him as the AIO President is a big plus. It’s also an image plus for the Nigerian Insurance industry within the continental ecosystem.”
While lending his voice on the matter, Segun Bankole, said “I believe Mr. Tope Smart with his wealth of experience will do Nigeria proud as the President of the AIO.
“The Nigerians will rally support for him. And all hands must be on deck to ensure his success; we believe for him to have gotten to that position he is well prepared and ready for this job, and Nigerians are solidly behind him because for a Nigerian to be in that enviable position as President of AIO is a welcome development for Nigeria and the insurance industry.”
