The Brokers’ Conference finally happened on Thursday, April 7th, at Speke Resort Munyonyo in the Victoria Ballroom. It was a highly anticipated conference thanks to the flurry of teasers on TV, radio, and social media. And unlike many conferences of this nature, it didn’t disappoint by all standards. In fact one would say, the insurance brokers under their umbrella body – the Insurance Brokers Association of Uganda (IBAU) outdid themselves.
A major highlight of this conference was the keynote address delivered by Ms. Anne Juuko, CEO of Stanbic Bank Uganda, who unflinchingly challenged the brokers and the insurance fraternity, in general, to desist from complicating insurance and make it more accessible to all audiences. “Simplify insurance, let the people know what’s in it for them, and ensure that the process of acquisition is straightforward.” Ms. Juuko also passionately touched on diversifying the workforce environment pointing to the fact that women & people with disability should be given more opportunities.
The Guest of Honor, Hon Amos Lugoloobi – State Minister for Planning in his speech pledged to support the insurance sector as they play their role in revitalizing the economy. “This year, our projected revenue loss that was approved by parliament was 2.5 Trillion Shillings which prompted a budget cut of 40% which then affected service delivery”. He explained that if government had an insurance policy to protect it against this risk, it would have been indemnified as opposed to borrowing to cover the gap. He therefore invited the insurance sector to step up and work with government for the prosperity of the economy.
The conference consisted of four panel sessions that featured opinion leaders in the economic sector. In his usual energetic style, former Vision Group CEO Robert Kabushenga moderated the first panel session where he unapologetically put panelists like Amos Wekesa (Tourism Businessman) & the newly appointed CEO of the Uganda Insurers Association – Mr. Jonan Kisakye on the spot on the topic of key drivers for business resilience in a Post-COVID world. Robert Kabushenga was not shy to point out some un-doings of the sector but also emphasized the need to evolve and adapt to the changing world. He raised eyebrows when he revealed that he was enrolling to study coding to best keep up with the rapidly evolving digital revolution.
Solomon Rubondo, the Chairman of IBAU took matters into his own hands by taking up the role of Master of Ceremonies which he executed brilliantly and humorously. Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the conference, Mr. Rubondo revealed that insurance stakeholders were already in talks with government to offer insurance to the different sectors therein. “We are midway in our talks with government to encourage them to insure the government assets, properties, employees, vehicles” he said.
Other notable panelists at the conference included Neilsimms Sangho from Flutterwave, Josephine Kasekende from MIC Global Risks, Anthony Mwangi – President of the Association of Insurance Brokers in Kenya, Zephania Dube from Prudential Uganda among others. The conference was a blend of glamour and substance, a further testament to the strides in the right direction for IBAU and insurance as a sector.