Taking Advantage Of AIO Conference To Project Nigeria Image, Enhance Economy
Mr. Tope Smart, incoming President of AIO
In this article, EDET UDOH highlights the inherent advantages and opportunities of the African Insurance Organisation (AIO) holding in Nigeria, and how Nigeria, the host can take advantage of the conference to project her image and better the lives of her citizens.
In every international conference, there is always an opportunity for the host country to latch on and make a statement either positive or negative and this statement always form part of what the visitors will take home.
With the forthcoming 47th Conference and General Assembly of the Pan-African Insurance Organisation, the African Insurance Organisation (AIO), holding in Lagos, Nigeria, from September 4 through 8, 2021, Nigerian Insurance Industry, has a lot of plans working with the Local Organising Committee (LOC) and how they can also take advantage of the conference to improve the nation’s economic capacity.
Apart from harnessing the economic advantages and ensuring a hitch-free, successful and memorable AIO Conference in Nigeria, the Nigerian insurance industry plans to use the opportunity of playing host to African insurance industry to correct some negative misconceptions some people are having about Nigeria and Nigerian people.
Those who see the forthcoming AIO conference in Nigeria as a veritable platform or an opportunity for Nigeria and Nigerians to correct the negative perceptions people outside the country are having about Nigeria and its people include the income President of AIO and the Group Managing Director of Nem Insurance Plc, Mr Tope Smart; the Chairman, Local Organising Committee of AIO 47th General Assembly and Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Nsia Insurance, Mrs. Ebelechukwu Nwachukwu; the Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), Mr. Tope Adaramola; the Deputy General Manager, Sales and Corporate Communications, Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc, Mr. Segun Bankole and an insurance Analyst and Consultant, Mr. Ekerete Ola Gam-Ikon.
They all expressed their views during an exclusive interview with the Revealerng.com.
While speaking on the plans for the conference and its prospects for Nigeria and Nigerians, Mr Smart said “We want to use the AIO event to showcase Nigeria in order to correct some negative misconceptions people are having about the country. We want to make the visitors to know us for who we really are; for them to know that Nigeria is a good country with good people; that we are very hospitable; that we have a very rich cultural heritage. We want to use the event to make people who are coming to see that Nigeria is a peaceful country as against their negative perceptions about Nigeria.”
Accordingly, the AIO conference LOC Chairman, Mrs. Nwachukwu stated, “hosting this conference is significant to us in more ways than one.
“Apart from the opportunity to showcase our rich culture and hospitality, it will also be a great opportunity to correct some of the misconceptions about Nigeria and her people.
“We have the opportunity to showcase Nigerian hospitality; we will have the opportunity to showcase the Nigerian rich cultural heritage; We have plans to take the delegates around Lagos and other places of interest where they can purchase items of interest such as artefacts and other made in Nigeria items; Hotels business will receive a boost as delegates are expected to stay in hotels during the conference.
“All these are going to contribute to economic activities in the country and for the fact that we are hosting at all, is really going to add value to our industry and gives us the opportunity to showcase that insurance is strong enough to support the economy.
The NCRIB CEO, Tope Adaramola said, “Anywhere this kind of international conference is held, there are several advantages that the host country gets, namely: reputational value. A lot has been said about Nigeria on the negative side which many people believe are over-amplified but with the coming of the AIO, a lot of these delegates who have never been to Nigeria before will come and have the idea and a better perspective about what the country is.
“The second is the impact it will have on the economy. Because these delegates will fly into the country, they will lodge in the hotels, they will do some transactions, and all these will help to swell the economy and give us some substantial foreign earnings which this country is looking for seriously.
“Again, it will also be a basis for our own practitioners to have a feel of those who play in other countries. Note that in AIO not every practitioner has the opportunity to travel out to places where they host the conference in a yearly basis. But bringing AIO to Nigeria, you have sort of brought the conference to the doorstep of Nigerians and they can take advantage of the knowledge that is going to be shared in order to enrich and enhance their profession. So AIO is coming with a whole lot of advantages to our country.
“It’s now left for us not just to hear, participate, but to make actionable progress based on the knowledge that will be shared to engage in constructive and enduring synergies, ensure networking is done in the course of the conference not just temporarily but such that will serve for a long time.
In his contribution, the DGM, Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc, Segun Bankole said, “With about 600 delegates from all over Africa coming into Nigeria, I want to see some level of hospitality in the part of Nigerians to these people, to let them know that Nigeria is a very hospitable country when they came for AIO conference in Nigeria. In time past we had an incidence of some delegates going for a conference in one of the countries in Africa and at the end of the day some died, we don’t want to see such occurrence here, every hand should be on deck in order to ensure a hitch-free conference.
“With the event taking place in Nigeria, there should be some money for those in the hospitality business; there should be some money for those in the transportation business, among others. It’s like having a conference of African leaders of thought in the insurance industry. So I expect that the Nigerian populace should know that something is happening in Nigeria. Like in the world cup when you have spectators and football lovers from other continents gather in a particular country, so basically I expect the same thing to happen during the AIO Conference and General Assembly in Nigeria.
While speaking specifically on the economic advantage of the conference to Nigeria and Nigerians, the Chairman, Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) who is also the Group Managing Director of Cornerstone Insurance Plc, Mr. Ganiyu Musa, noted that even though it is an insurance industry event, there is a lot of multiplier effects not only for insurance operators but also for other services providers.
According to him, beyond insurance operators, you will have service providers to the insurance industry across Africa that will also have the opportunity to pitch their services and their products..
“You will have technology services providers, such as Insuretech; Fintech who is really on the cause of something “Great Nigeria” they provide a lot of services that are complementary to insurance and a lot of them are expected to participate in the conference by setting up a kiosk during the event to strike partnership such that at the end of the day will bring investment into the country.
“The benefit of the event will go beyond the insurance but both insurance and all services around insurance will be impacted.
“They will take a stand to display their products and services, hold bilateral discussions, strike partnerships both short and long term. It is something that is expected to be significant in terms of impact, both immediately and for several months in Nigeria after the conference is over,” he added.
Speaking on how Nigerians and the Nigerian insurance industry can maximize the economic potentials and opportunities of the conference to its advantage and national growth, Ekerete Gam-Ikon said, “This year’s conference should take the insurance industry in Nigeria online and mobile then we should never come back to where we were before the event.
“Understandably, many people all over the world are going to start searching for more stories about the Nigerian insurance sector online and if any company is not found there with sufficient information to attract investors and customers that would be a lost opportunity.
“The websites of insurance companies and associations need to be enhanced with updated and reliable information and data; even the regulator, NAICOM should take advantage of this to inform the world about its actions and plans towards attracting investors to Nigeria. It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we should take it fully because it will be a long time before we host it again.”
In Conclusion, the forthcoming event comes with a lot of opportunities for Nigeria and Nigerians. For Nigeria, the AIO conference will offer the nation’s insurance industry players the opportunity to network and compare notes with players from other African countries, and for Nigerians, the conference will bring a lot of opportunities for those in the hospitality and transportation businesses especially for those whose businesses are closer to the event venue.
It will also provide Nigeria and Nigerians with the opportunity to improve the country’s image and its economic capacity. The choice is ours.
