Strategies to sanitize insurance industry discussed

delegates at the conference

Insurance professionals from across West Africa recently converged in The Gambia to discuss strategies to clean their industry of unprofessional and unethical insurance institutions and practitioners who are said to be partly responsible for the slow growth and development of the industry in the sub-region.

“Professional and Ethical Behaviour in the Insurance Industry” was the discussion topic at the annual general meeting and educational conference of the West African Insurance Companies Association (WAICA) hosted in The Gambia by the Insurance Association of The Gambia (IAG) from 15 to 17 April at the Kairaba Beach Hotel in Senegambia.

The discussion was centred on how to root out all those people who are behaving in an unprofessional and unethical manner in the insurance industry.

Speaking on the occasion, the president of the Insurance Association of the Gambia (IAG), said the theme of the conference is indeed interesting and appropriate considering the scale and scope of professional deception and ethical misconduct in the financial system in recent times. 

Gambia Hosts AGM of sub-regional Insurance Association

The 34^th annual general meeting and educational conference of the West African Insurance Companies Association (WAICA) will be held in the Gambia from 15 to 17 April this year, William B. Coker, secretary general and chief executive officer of the sub-regional insurance association, has revealed.

The theme of the conference, to be held at the Kairaba Beach Hotel in Senegambia, is “Professional and Ethical Behaviour in the Insurance Industry”. 

About 200 delegates, including representatives of various insurance companies in the sub-region, insurance brokers, and reinsurance companies as well as observers from all over the world are expected to grace the annual rotating conference.

Mr Coker, CEO/Secretary General of WAICA

Sunday, 15 April, is the arrival of the delegates, who will be treated to a welcome cocktail in the evening, and the conference proper takes place on 16 and 17 April.

Mr Coker, a Gambian, says this year the conference will discuss professionalism and ethical behaviour because these issues worry not only the insurance industry but other industries as well.  

“So as far as the insurance industry is concerned, we want to see how we can root out all those people who are behaving in an unprofessional manner, in an unethical manner because those are the few people that give any industry a bad name,” Mr Coker said. “So we are here to discuss that particular aspect of our work (insurance work) and see how best we can ostracize any such person or companies that are not behaving professionally and are dragging down the profession.”