By Taiye Olayemi

The Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) on Monday inaugurated its 2025 Innovation Lab, a facility designed to accelerate digital solutions and reshape insurance practice in the country.

Speaking at the launch in Lagos, NIA Chairman, Mr Kunle Ahmed, said the initiative marked a milestone in repositioning the industry for a technology-driven future.

Ahmed recalled that at his inauguration in October 2024, he had emphasised the need for insurers to embrace digital innovations and pledged to establish an innovation challenge to foster new solutions.

“Today, we are not just opening a facility, we are igniting a movement, rooted in innovation, driven by collaboration, and destined to transform the way we protect lives, assets, and futures,” he said.

Ahmed explained that the lab would serve as a hub where ideas would be nurtured, technologies tested, and scalable solutions developed for the Nigerian market.

According to him, the youthful demographics of Nigeria, with a median age of 18 years, make it imperative for insurers to adopt digital platforms, artificial intelligence, blockchain, and data analytics.

He said this was needed to improve efficiency, expand access, and deepen trust.

“Innovation is not a luxury. It is a necessity. The future of our industry depends on agility, inclusiveness, and digital empowerment,” he said.

Ahmed urged regulators, technology partners, and member companies to collaborate with the association in making the innovation lab a success.

He described the lab as a symbol of unity of purpose and diversity of thought, adding that it would serve as a platform for continuous learning and adaptation in a rapidly changing world.

“To our innovators, this is your launchpad, your opportunity to shape the future.

“To our member companies, invest in this future. And to every Nigerian, believe in the power of innovation to protect assets and sustain standards of living,” he said.

Earlier, Mr Babatunde Fajemirokun, Chairman, NIA Advisory Committee on Digital Innovation and IT, presented insights from the survey earlier conducted which informed on the challenging areas to wade into.

The survey, which engaged 45 senior leaders including 22 Chief Executive Officers, 10 Chief Technology Officers, and 13 heads of strategy across life, general, and micro-insurance, revealed areas where the industry must channel its focus.

“The data reveal a sector ready to embrace innovation, with 87 per cent of executives expressing willingness to collaborate on shared solutions and 69 per cent confirming readiness to commit resources in 2025.

“Customer experience, acquisition, KYC, and distribution rank as the top priorities for innovation.

“Fraud management, eKYC, and claims exchange emerged as the most promising areas for industry-wide collaboration,” he said.

Giving details on the programme overview, Mr Damola Oloko, Innovation lead for the project, said that interested innovators would be engaged in a 6-week accelerator programme.

He noted that the initiative would seek to identify and support startups and scale-up developing solutions in critical areas as identified by the industry.

He said the entire process would feature a pitch day when shortlisted applicants would be invited to pitch their proposition to a panel jury.

He explained that the final five startups would be selected and the audience would be applicants, jury, insurance company representatives, and regulators.

“The demo day will close out the programme with presentations from each of the startups regarding their solution and learnings from the programme.

“Solutions to be taken to the pilot phase will also be selected on the demo day.” (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Kevin Okunzuwa