THE IMPACT OF THE GOVERNMENT POLICIES IN REGULATING THE ACTIVITIES OF INSURANCE COMPANIES IN NIGERIA

THE IMPACT OF THE GOVERNMENT POLICIES IN REGULATING THE ACTIVITIES OF INSURANCE COMPANIES IN NIGERIA

ABSTRACT

Regulation of Nigeria’s insurance industry has become substantially intensified in the last two decades. This paper critically evaluates the philosophy and challenges of insurance regulation in the context of post-authoritarian governance and increasing economic liberalization in Africa’s potential largest insurance market. The last two decades has witnessed among others, government regulatory intervention through the establishment of a regulator and mandatory recapitalization. This study assesses the regulatory experience of the Nigerian insurance industry prior to and after the capitalization era; spanning 1999 to 2009. Temporally, the trajectory of developments in the last decade which coincides with post-authoritarian military rule in the country is significant. As a developing economy, the Nigerian insurance industry presents an example of untapped and gross under-utilization of its boundless potentials.