The College of Insurance Supervisors for West African Monetary Zone, has received a charge to follow in the footsteps of similar global associations and like them, be the bastion for efficient regulation and supervision of insurance institution in the west African region.
Commissioner for Insurance and chairman, West Africa Insurance Supervisors Association WAISA, Mr. Sunday Thomas, (pictured) said this at today’s 2nd meeting of CISWAMZ at Reiz International Hotel, Abuja. It was chaired by the pioneer chairman, Mr. Pius Agboola, director (Inspectorate) National Insurance Commission. While imploring CISWAMZ to adopt the global focus of other global institutions that have created protocols for insurance supervision and regulation, Nigeria’s CFI said, “Documentation of your proceedings should be giving priority as this will be point of reference for improved supervisory activities in the region.”
Thomas said it was necessary to follow the protocol of global institutions which have become the rallying point for global practice. Laying the foundation for this charge he said, “The International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), has provided a forum for members to share their experiences and understanding of insurance supervisory and insurance markets. Their experiences and practices led to the development of 26 Insurance Core Principles centred on regional and international cooperation.
“The ICP 25 is on supervisory cooperation and coordination (sectorial, regional and inter-regional) while ICP 26 is on cross border cooperation and coordination on crisis management,” he stated.
He pointed to another beacon for CISWAMZ to follow, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) created in 1989, “is an inter-governmental body whose purpose is the development and promotion of national and international policies to combat money laundering and terrorism finance. The anti-money laundering body has developed 40 recommendations and 11 effective outcomes and there is no country that can achieve any reasonable progress in its effectiveness without actively belonging/or cooperating with other countries/ regional body in the implementation of their policies.”
Thomas said CISWAMZ was a sure bet for member states “to recognise that co-ordination of supervisory effort and sharing of information of supervised entities is important in carrying out an efficient consolidated supervision, maintaining effective oversight, promoting compliance with extant laws and maintaining the highest level of oversight quality while carrying out their supervisory responsibilities in their respective countries.”
On this note Thomas said the setting up of CISWAMZ “is a good step in the right direction to forge synergy between/ among us for the goal of effective and efficient regulation and supervision of insurance institution in our region.” Another impetus for this he cited, were risks following the emerged global village, the development of information technology and the inter-global dynamic of business/organisation, all of these spinning the need for inevitable regional co-operation.
