Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, CEO, Anchor Insurance LTD, Mr. Ebose Augustine has appealed to media practitioners to assist the insurance sector in its ongoing efforts to deepen insurance penetration in the country.

Ebose said that the media can render assistance through adequate sensitization and education of the public on the inherent benefits in insurance products and services.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony of the new executives of the National Association of Insurance and Pension Correspondents (NAIPCO) in Lagos today, Ebose noted that the media has got a pivotal role of constantly educating the public on the new ways of doing things and business.

Speaking on the topic: “The Role of Insurance Journalists in Emerging Realities” Ebose who was represented by the Executive Director, Technical, Anchor Insurance, Mr. Adebisi Ikuomola, appealed to media practitioners to help insurers in achieving their target objective of deepening insurance penetration in the country through their pivotal role in communicating the message of insurance to the public.

He opined that with the new normal brought about by the covid-19 pandemic, the media has got the pivotal role of constantly educating the public on the new ways of doing things.

He said: “It is the social responsibility of the Journalists to ensure that as the light of the public, no one is left in the dark about new realities.

“The new global realities have more than ever before imposed an onerous responsibility on journalists to continue to update their skills by developing new capacities, a paradigm shift in the way we see things, report issues objectively to achieve balanced perspective and stand point.”

On the recapitalization exercise, he said “It is the duty of the insurance Journalist to offer regular well researched analyses on how companies can go through the processes with ease, the advantages of the process to insurers, shareholders, the insured and the workers. It is not a time for the insurance Journalists to begin to watch to know who will sail through or not.

“The new reality poses new levels of risks globally, overwhelming health infrastructures and developing economies are harder hit. Most advanced countries entered into the pandemic with historic loan and public debts on average higher than they have been over the years.”

The Anchor Boss who highlighted the various challenges posed by the pandemic stated that the impact of the pandemic on the insurance services could be felt in areas like high claims demand, credit risk exposures from businesses facing possible default, lack of sales from travel insurance, less use of face to face marketing channel, surge in demand for health and business interruption insurances.

“The Nigerian insurers are a set of geniuses as we already have developed and perfected quick ways to pre-empting any challenges the pandemic throws at our businesses any time,” he said.