The President and Chairman of Council of the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers, Ekeoma Ezeibe, has called on practitioners to reposition themselves as central players in the nation’s emerging industrial landscape.
Speaking at the April 2026 Edition of the NCRIB Members’ Evening in Lagos, hosted by Universal Insurance Plc, Ezeibe highlighted that the unification of the FX market and the removal of subsidies have unlocked unprecedented value in capital inflows and infrastructure development.
She argued that the traditional view of insurance must evolve to keep pace with these national milestones.
“Government reforms are unlocking value… Q1 2026 saw 41 per cent growth in capital inflows year-on-year. Insurance is now an economic infrastructure. These reforms create insurable assets at scale,” she added.
The NCRIB President pointed to specific mega-projects, including the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and the Presidential CNG Initiative, as direct conduits for insurance growth, noting that the transition to a more formalised economy provides a fertile ground for specialised careers that were previously underutilised.
“New roads need builders’ Liability; CNG fleets need Motor and GIT covers; Formalising SMEs need Group Life and Assets All Risk. Our job is to be present where value is created. The headwinds are easing,” she further said.
Similarly, the Managing Director/CEO of Universal Insurance Plc, Japhet Duru, reassured the brokerage community that the industry is building the financial muscle necessary to support these large-scale risks.
Addressing concerns regarding the 2026 recapitalisation exercise mandated by the NIIRA Act of 2025, Duru stated that Universal Insurance is already seeing a surplus of investor interest.
He said, “We are putting in place all necessary documentation to commence our Rights issue and private placement processes. We will be faced with the challenge of refunding some funds at the end of the exercise because we have already got more than enough commitment from our shareholders.”
Duru emphasised that while capital is critical, the “true test” of the industry’s promise lies in its operational efficiency and its relationship with the brokers who distribute these products. He noted that Universal Insurance has spent the last year streamlining its internal processes to ensure that as brokers bring in new infrastructure business, the claims experience remains seamless.
“Brokers remain the backbone of insurance distribution… You are not just intermediaries; you are partners in progress. We have improved our service delivery channels and ensured faster turnaround times, particularly in claims settlement,” he noted.
The event, which was attended by several industry icons and past presidents of the Council, concluded with a call to action for brokers to convert “national growth into insured growth”.
With the 2026 recapitalisation deadline approaching, the consensus among leaders is that a more capitalised and strategically aligned insurance sector is ready to serve as the safety net for Nigeria’s infrastructure revolution.
