‘Insurance Will Grow When Government Shows Responsibility to Sector’

Ebere Nwoji

A renown Economist and government budget/ economic policy analyst, Dr Biodub Adedipe, has said that Nigerian insurance sector would meet the expected level of growth desired by the sector operators and stakeholders when government at all levels begin to show sense of responsibility to their insurance obligations through proper insurance of their assets and payment of premium.

Adedipe, also urged federal government to take advantage of continued rise in the price of crude oil in the international market to reduce budget deficit and build infrastructure for Nigerians.

Adedipe who stated this during a chart with the media in Lagos, added, “For the insurance sector to grow, government need also to be responsible to its insurance obligations which talks about paying premium. There also must be need for flexibility and also ensuring that compulsory insurance is enforced because enforcement had always been an issue.

“If the government is responsible and put a lot of effort into enforcement, then what we have today as compulsory insurance we can actually create more value from. And when insurance sector is vibrant, it will galvanise businesses and individuals to take risk and that is how economies grow.”

According to him, the freedom to take risk is on the back of a vibrant insurance sector, so the conversation should be how do we make that sector vibrant and that brings us to involve more interactions between government agencies and the insurance sector, so that all the stakeholders constantly are engaging and so whatever is needed to be done to make us deepen insurance, the government will keep making that happen.

Adedipe observed that the price of crude has been favourable to the economy adding, “The price of crude has been favourable to us. It is either you use the gain to reduce the deficit, or alternatively, you use that gain to build infrastructure, which ultimately will also increase government revenue.”

Adedipe also warned that the forthcoming election could create liquidity pressures in the economy, as there will be too much money in circulation.

He said: “In pre election years, politicians spend a lot of money and that creates liquidity pressure. You have so much money circulating and that stands to put pressure on prices, so it will be expected this year that there will be inflationary pressure.”