Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. THE Insurance Institute of Zimbabwe (IIZ) says Africa’s insurance sector needs a radical overhaul, urging leaders to abandon traditional risk models and reposition insurance as a core driver of economic growth, resilience, and investment across the continent.
IIZ president Clementine Chinyuku made the remarks during her opening address at the ongoing Southern Africa Insurance Indaba in Victoria Falls yesterday.
Chinyuku said Africa’s insurance industry stood “at a pivotal moment”, where decisions made today will define whether it continues reacting to crises or evolves into “a proactive catalyst for sustainable development”.
“This year’s theme, Reimagining Insurance: Unlocking Economic Potential and Building Resilience in Africa, challenges us to shift from exclusion to inclusivity, from complicated processes to straightforward solutions, and from simply offering protection to actively empowering our clients and communities,” she said.
In her address, Chinyuku announced a strategic transformation of the long-running IIZ annual conference into a Pan-African platform for policy dialogue and industry collaboration, now rebranded as the Southern Africa Insurance Indaba.
“This evolution is not symbolic; it is strategic,” she asserted.
“Our challenges — low penetration, climate shocks, infrastructure deficits, and regulatory fragmentation — are shared across Africa. So must be our solutions.”
The new Indaba aims to become the continent’s leading platform for insurance policy shaping, professional development, innovation exchange, and collaboration among insurers, reinsurers, regulators, governments, and technology players.
Chinyuku pushed for a fundamental shift in how African economies view insurance, arguing it should be understood not as a cost, but as a critical source of development capital.
“Insurance can finance agriculture, safeguard entrepreneurs, and stabilise economies. It can transform risk into opportunity and uncertainty into resilience,” she said.
Chinyuku said the Indaba would focus on key areas including expanding SME insurance, strengthening agricultural insurance, developing products that respond to climate change, leveraging the African Continental Free Trade Area, integrating InsurTech and aligning regulation across markets.
Participating at the event are delegates from across Africa and beyond — including Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Cameroon, Zambia and the United Arab Emirates — whose presence reflects growing regional cohesion.
“The potential to reshape this sector lies in the people in this room,” Chinyuku said.
“Together we can build an industry marked by resilience, inclusivity and a distinctly African identity.”
She noted that Africa’s markets share common obstacles, including fragmented regulation, climate vulnerability and low financial literacy.
Overcoming these, she said, required models that embed trust and relevance through customer-centric product development, data-driven decision-making and risk education strategies that resonate with local realities.
“By leveraging technology and adapting business models to address challenges like low penetration, fragmented regulation, and climate risks, insurers must focus on value, accessibility, trust, and relevance,” Chinyuku said
“Key priorities include customer-centric innovation, financial inclusion, climate resilience, agricultural risk coverage, regulatory modernisation, education and data-driven decisions.”
Meanwhile, IIZ general manager DavsionChoeni said insurance professionals stood at the intersection of risk, resilience and opportunity.
As the continent evolves, he added, economies were rebuilding and repositioning, forcing the insurance industry to respond with agility, foresight and innovation.
“This indaba gives us a powerful space to challenge old assumptions, share practical solutions, forge partnerships, and reimagine what is possible for the future of insurance in Africa,” Choeni said.
“Together, we will explore how our sector can drive sustainable growth, support development, and contribute meaningfully to national and regional economic agendas.”
In response to this, he said the institute had partnered with the National University of Science and Technology to launch a number of examinable courses in 2026.
“These include Certificate in Insurance Board Leadership, Advanced Diploma in General Insurance, Advanced Diploma in Agriculture & Climate Risk Insurance, Advanced Diploma in Life Insurance, Advanced Diploma in Pension Funds Management, Advanced Diploma in Reinsurance, and Advanced Diploma in Risk Management,” Choeni said.
“These will be in addition to the current Ministry of Higher Education accredited and highly sought-after courses we offer as the institute, namely, Certificate of Proficiency in Long-Term Business, Short-Term Business, Funeral, Medical Health as well as Trusteeship and Retirement, Certificate in Insurance, Diploma in Insurance Associateship as well as Fellowship.”
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