Luanda - The production of direct insurance in Angola registered a growth rate of 17 percent, nine percentage points higher than in 2022, which resulted in the issuance of gross premiums amounting to more than 360 billion Kwanzas, the president of the Board of Directors of the Angolan Insurance Regulation and Supervision Agency, (ARSEG), Elmer Serrão said on Friday.
Among the insurance products that sold the most in the 23 companies operating in the country last year, those in the areas of accidents, illnesses and travel stand out.
According to the chairman of the Board of Directors, the growth of Life insurance also contributed to the result, which recorded growth of 12% compared to eight in the previous year, supported by the increasing rate of credit provision to the national economy (in 2023).
Speaking at the opening of the meeting of insurance market operators, at national level, the manager explained that Life insurance recorded a growth in premiums of 89% and general civil liability insurance, with a growth rate of around 49%.
With regard to compensation, Elmer Serrão said that insurance companies, during the year 2023, paid approximately 149 billion kwanzas to their policyholders, representing a claim rate of 41% compared to 33% in the previous year.
According to the person responsible, for the first time in five years, the market's accident rate reversed its downward trend, a situation strongly influenced by the increase in accident rates in the petrochemical sector, where an accident rate of 29% was recorded, contrary to the 2 % recorded in the previous one.
In Angola, he pointed out, 23 insurance companies operate, 33 pension funds and more than two thousand insurance intermediaries, including legal entities and individuals.
Regarding the sector's challenges, the manager pointed to the continuity of regulatory reform, the materialization of the issuance of the regulation on Corporate Governance and the improvement of the 0.8% contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Regarding the sector's technical methodological meeting, under the theme of “compliance” (operational compliance), he indicated that insurers must be committed to integrity, transparency and responsibility, with a view to guaranteeing the highest ethical and legal standards.
“The compliance function must be carried out by competent and qualified personnel, independently and objectively”, considered the leader of the Angolan insurance regulatory entity.
On the occasion, the president of the Executive Committee (PCE) of Viva Seguros, Damien Veerapatren, considered “compliance” as a fundamental mechanism for sustaining the insurance industry.
On the other hand, he said that his institution has, in recent years, insured 100,000 agricultural families with the aim of promoting and encouraging national production, adapting to the needs of families and companies in the Angolan market.
According to the manager, insured farmers are distributed across six provinces (Cuanza Sul, Benguela, Huambo, Malanje and Bié) and 54 municipalities in the country.
In turn, the PCE of Sol Seguros, Rui Almeida, indicated that one of the major concerns regarding the observation of “compliance” in Angola relates to the availability of qualified staff in the Angolan market.
The consultant and international specialist in fraud and money laundering, Weder Souza, representing Tis Tech, an Angolan technological solutions company, considered that fraud is one of the main problems facing insurance companies in the world.
For the specialist, there are currently technological tools to combat fraud and money laundering, based on data collection, analysis and detection of anomalies, network management and advanced research.
The event called “Business And Breakfast' on 'compliance' in the insurance sector was organized by the Angolan magazine Economia & Mercado which, among other topics, addressed the financial and reputational impact of risk, fraud and money laundering.
Among the objectives, the event aimed to create an in-depth dialogue on the alignment between organizational conduct and applicable legislation, compliance with standards and laws in the insurance sector. OPF/AC/DOJ
