By Rosemary Iwunze
Nigeria’s insurance sector recorded 24.9 per cent growth in total assets Year-on-Year, YoY, to N4.2 trillion in the first quarter of 2025, Q1’25, against N3.3 trillion recorded in the corresponding period of 2024.
Industry experts are of the view that the sector is demonstrating resilience amidst operational and macroeconomic challenges.
According to the first quarter report of the sector released by the National Insurance Commission, NAICOM, yesterday, the non-life insurance business recorded N2.7 trillion in assets while the life insurance business recorded N1.4 trillion.
According to NAICOM the industry outlook could be adjudged as positive at the backdrop of the ongoing regulatory initiatives including sector-wide digitization, risk-based supervision among other measures.
Further breakdown of the NAICOM report show that total gross premium written, GPW, increased by 63.4 per cent to N769.2 billion in Q1’25 from N470.7 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2024.
Industry experts said the growth in total premium is an indication of the sector’s ability to adapt and grow despite the prevailing macroeconomic challenges, and also reflective of the sustained regulatory market deepening measures.
The report stated: “The industry recorded a gross premium written of N769.2 billion for both life and non-life businesses during the quarter, the highest ever premium generation in a first quarter period of any year. This is also an indication of the fulfilling potentials of the market that has come of age, as the industry looks towards technology and the big-data driven policies for expansion.
“The non-life segment retained its relative dominance in the market, contributing 64.0% to the total premium pool, mirroring its performance in the corresponding quarter of 2024. On the other hand, the life insurance segment accounted for 36.0% of all the premiums generated during the same period.
“Insight into the non-life segment indicates that the Oil & Gas portfolio remained the major contributor, accounting for 38.3% of the total non-life premiums during the quarter. This was followed by Fire Insurance with 18.7% and Motor Insurance at 15.8%. Meanwhile, the Marine & Aviation, General Accident, and Miscellaneous portfolios contributed 10.9%, 9.9%, and 6.4%, respectively.”
