Nigeria’s insurance industry recorded a 10.24% growth in gross written premiums (GWPs), rising to 560 billion nairas ($1.30 billin) in 2021 from 508 billion nairas recorded in 2020, Vanguard newspaper reported.

Nigeria Insurers Association Chairman Ganiyu Musa noted that the sector achieved the feat despite the numerous challenges that confronted the sector.

“The Nigerian insurance industry was not insulated from developments in the general economic space and had its fair share of the challenges facing the larger financial market during the year under review,” he said.

With erratic power supply and a surge in the energy cost against the background of failing infrastructure, insurance companies had to contend with the increasing cost of operations. These and many other factors, including the multiplicity of taxes, contributed to affecting the bottom line of insurance companies, the report noted.

In addition, the sector paid 11.1 billion nairas ($25.8 million) claims to insured that suffered various losses during the EndSARS protests, Musa said.

(Editing by Seban Scaria seban.scaria@lseg.com)