Insurance: Lagos pays over N2bn as premium, says Commissioner

Lagos State government on Monday said over N2billion has been spent on workers’ insurance premiums for the Year 2021, adding that over 73,000 government employees were on the database from the ministries and all covered under the life insurance scheme.

The State Commissioner for Finance, Rabiu Olowo, disclosed this while speaking at a press briefing, which took place at Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre, Alausa, Ikeja, to intimate the public of the Insurance Week, a week-long event, kick-starting on Tuesday with lectures and exhibitions.

“Presently, we have over 73,000 employees on our database from the ministries and all these employees are covered under the life insurance.

“This year alone, we have paid over N2 billion in insurance premium to cover life and non-life. That speaks to the importance of insurance. We also saw the benefits of engaging in insurance during this COVID-19 pandemic and the #ENDSars protest,” he said.

The commissioner, while assuring that the state government was ready to bear the risk if you could be insured, said the gesture was in line with the present administration’s commitment to ensuring adequate care for its workforce while serving and after retirement.

“Lagos State, over the years, has continued to insure its staff with regular payment of premium to cater for them during service, and also payment of death benefits,” the commissioner said.

Olowo said the insurance week came about following the discovery that many of the workers were not fully aware of the existence of a professional insurance department domiciled in the Ministry of Finance and, as such, had not been maximizing the crucial role being performed by this department.

According to him, the insurance department provides professional risk advisory to the state, adding that it also coordinated the various insurance policies and packages of the state.

“The task of ensuring that vehicles, buildings, electronics, computers, firefighting equipment, other assets, as well as the welfare package of the entire workforce, is the responsibility of the insurance department.

‘This insurance week will explore the various advantages and benefits of insurance to the entire workforce. To this end, we have identified the need for more sensitisation and education on insurance, and how civil servants and the entire populace can key into the abundant opportunities in insurance.

“Insurance is one of the ways that we manage risk in Lagos State. It is not an issue of optionality or so. We have life and non-life insurance and that is very compulsory,” the commissioner stated.

“We have enjoyed the real essence and value proposition of insurance, and the best we can do is to further our commitment to ensuring that our insurance activities are more strengthened. This is why we are doing this sensitisation and advocacy,” he added.

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