Africa Re draws global patronage on competitiveness, strength

Africa Reinsurance Corporation (Africa Re) says its choice as a preferential partner in the continent is guided by the Corporation’s performance attested by its financial strength rating, excellent technical performance, proximity to clients, competitive pricing and technical assistance.

According to the company, Africa Re, as the largest (ranked among the top 40 reinsurance groups in the world by S&P) and best-rated reinsurance company based on the African continent (“A” by A.M. Best and “A-“ by Standard & Poor’s) offers world-class reinsurance covers and security to its clients that is still unrivalled by any indigenous reinsurer on the continent.

“Together with the Corporation’s highly regarded professionals, this has been the bedrock of the Corporation’s success in the industry despite stiff local and international competition.”, the Company said in statement.

In the past 41 years, the African Reinsurance Corporation has been carrying on the business of reinsurance in the African continent. This journey of dedicated service to the insurance industry has contributed in no small manner to the economic development of our dear continent.   

The main purpose for the establishment of the Corporation in 1976 was to prevent capital flight from the African continent, a practice which was massively prevalent in the 1960s & 1970s and which still persists nowadays, though in a reduced way. In addition, Africa Re’s mission includes the development of the insurance and reinsurance industry in Africa, promoting the growth of underwriting and retention capacities across the continent, and supporting African economic development. The pursuit of this mission has been the sole focus of the Board of Directors, Management and staff of the Corporation over the years.

From the onset, Africa Re’s mission in Africa is unique in that it sets itself apart from the rest of the industry and clearly defines its responsibilities vis-à-vis the development of the African continent. The corporate mission also informs its legal status and shareholding size and structure which includes the founding 41 African states. As a result, the Corporation enjoys a large acceptance across the continent and this has allowed it to concentrate up to 28 per cent of the total African shareholders’ funds in 2015, an indication of its weight in the total African underwriting capacity. Without that capacity, given the relatively undercapitalization of African reinsurers (average solvency of 85 per cent in 2015), more reinsurance premiums will leave the continent to overseas reinsurers. 

Africa Re believed in the continent before anyone else and it demonstrated that by opening offices and subsidiaries, today at the number of 8, long before the ‘Africa Rising’ narrative started recently. After more than four decades of determination and focus, Africa Re is now the leading African reinsurer on the continent.  Of the Corporation’s gross turnover which exceeded $642 million in 2016, only 9.5 per cent of this income is from mandatory cessions (in 41 member countries) of 5 per cent on treaty business, the bulk coming from North Africa. This attests to the fact that the Corporation’s income is obtained on a voluntary, competitive and value-for-money basis.

Modestus  Anaesoronye