Cenfri has deep insurance expertise from working with the insurance markets in Africa, Latin America and Asia. Insurance penetration in these markets is often low and we understand the need for responsible market innovation so that insurance fulfils its optimal role in building resilience, supporting business growth, and contributing to broader policy and development objectives.
The breadth of Cenfri’s insurance and resilience work spans diagnostic studies, development of global and regional standards and national regulations, technical assistance and innovation support (to regulators and the private sector), innovation studies, MSME-tailored resilience solutions, improved risk management in response to climate-related events, and definitive work on cell captives.
Our partners include GIZ, Access to Insurance Initiative (A2ii), the UK’s FCDO (formerly DFID), the FSD Africa and other financial sector deepening trusts, the Swiss Capacity Building Fund, FSCA, Hollard, Santam, Old Mutual, AXA, Britam, Generali, the Microinsurance Network, UNCDF, UNDP, The World Bank, IFC, IADB and ADB.
The COVID-19 pandemic and accompanying restrictions by many governments across sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have forced insurance providers, insurance regulators and consumers to rethink how they interact and maintain operations through this period. At Cenfri, through our RRI programme funded by FSD Africa, we are identifying and tracking the major challenges faced by both
The Access to Insurance Initiative (A2ii) recently published the report, “Evolving insurance supervisory mandates in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) – implications for data practices.” The report marks the first part of a project by the A2ii and Cenfri, in partnership with FSD Africa and together with a Steering Group comprising supervisors from seven jurisdictions: Ghana,
In the midst of increasing uncertainty resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, insurance regulators still need to ensure that they fulfil their core mandates of market stability, consumer protection and (in some cases) insurance market development. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected and disrupted the everyday operations of insurance supervisors – forcing them to adapt and
What challenges exist around remote onboarding? COVID-19 has caused significant disruptions to insurers’ operations, as they still have traditional business models and rely heavily on physical engagement for distribution. The lack of digitisation across the continent has emerged as a key barrier from our research on the impact that COVID-19
In partnership with Organisation of Eastern & Southern Africa Insurers (OESAI) and FSD Africa, we have undertaken a survey to better understand the impact of COVID-19 on organisations operating in the insurance sector across Eastern and Southern Africa. This survey was augmented by 33 semi-structured telephonic interviews with different insurance
COVID-19 containment and mitigation measures in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have restricted the movement of people, goods and services. This has affected insurers’ operations, which, to a large extent, have traditionally required physical engagement. It is also affecting insurers’ ability to launch new products, conclude new sales, collect premiums, service existing
Why visible and proactive policy leadership matters more than ever for insurance in the wake of COVID-19 As we discussed in our first blog in this series, our deep dive studies[1] across four Sub-Saharan Africa countries show that insurance matters for sustainable development and growth on three fronts: by building
International concern about the impacts of climate change and natural disasters has brought the insurance community together to build resilience and manage risk more effectively. At a time when insurers should be leveraging their risk management skills and not merely selling risk transfer policies, some companies want to reduce their
Webinar: The impact of COVID-19 on the sustainability of African insurance markets Our research in partnership with FSD Africa shows that many insurers in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) were already vulnerable before the onset of COVID-19 and that the effects of the pandemic will heighten this vulnerability. What are the medium
The COVID-19 health crisis has turned into an economic crisis that is affecting a broad range of sectors. On 27 March, the IAIS released a statement saying that, while insurers “are exposed on both sides of their balance sheets”, they “are generally well capitalised with sophisticated risk management capabilities, which should help the sector as a whole to
