FMRE Property and Casualty (FMRE), Managing Director, Ian Tavonesa, says Botswana’s local insurance and reinsurance industry need more insurance experts and requisite skills to penetrate a higher ratio.
Tavonesa pointed out that a higher number of experts are being brought from outside the country to assist in insurance difficulties. He spoke during a two-day market training session for various players within the local insurance and reinsurance industry.
He said specialist lines of Professional Indemnity, Directors and Officers Liability and Medical Malpractice need more training, focusing on the local insurance and reinsurance industry. He stated that the basis for this year’s training is due to the fact that the specialist lines market is still evolving in Africa, though it is more common in the developed world.
“Credit control is becoming a problem when people terminate premium payments and the premiums are under cutting as well,” he said.
Tavonesa stated that it is encouraging to see a lot of people willing to learn and understand how insurance works. He also stated that Botswana’ market is rapidly growing, particularly the non traditional classes of insurance, adding that there is need for macro insurance. Comparing Botswana and other parts of Africa, Tavonesa said that other countries are also coming up well particularly in East Africa because of oil and energy industry. He stated that economies like Angola are also because of loss of premiums and high penetration ratio.
“With globalisation, these covers are now pertinent since information, services and labour no longer know any boundaries and we need to be operating at the same level in Africa,” said Tavonesa.
He further said that FMRE property and Casualty also strive to bring up subjects that are topical and relevant to the market and added that they have been holding trainings in countries such as Uganda, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Botswana since 2008.
Tavonesa pointed out that as per the request in these particular markets, the trainings focussed on micro-insurance, agriculture, contractors all risks, marine and claims handling.
“Likewise, this training has been made relevant to the Botswana market and its needs,” he stated.
He noted that most of the countries where FMRE conducts business, including Botswana, there is considerable reliance on external technical assistance. He emphasized the need for regular and relevant trainings as they equipped markets with skills that enable them to handle insurance risks peculiar to their own circumstances.
