History of the African Insurance Organization

The founding

In the early 1970s, a few insurers, particularly from Mauritius, including Robert Woodthorpe Browne ⁽¹⁾, had noted a lack of communication between the various market players during their travels on the continent.

That period had also been marked by the arrival of a new market entrant, Compagnie de Réassurance Mauricienne, commonly known as Mauritius Re, Africa's first private reinsurer.

The latter was set up in 1969 through the concerted efforts of local insurer SWAN, broker Maurice Tozer & Beck (now AON) and Mercantile Bank (now HSBC). Back then, Mauritius Re had a contact office in London and handled reinsurance business worldwide.

It was against this backdrop that discussions between the various players led to the establishment of a regional meeting place. R. W. Browne, along with other professionals from the Mauritian insurance market, including René Adams, proposed the creation of a forum where the heads of African insurance companies could meet.

Based on this idea, Mauritius Re and the Insurers' Association of Mauritius (IAM), which was previously known as the Insurance Council of Mauritius (IACOM) approached the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) to organize a conference in Mauritius, a bilingual country with a growing insurance industry.

⁽¹⁾ Robert Woodthorpe Browne is a professional in the insurance and reinsurance market. He has held positions as an underwriter, broker, and consultant for major international insurance companies. He was the director of Robert Browne & Partners Ltd, a Lloyd’s member from 1979 to 1995.

First meeting, 1972

Supported by the Mauritian government, the first meeting was held from 5 to 9 June, 1972 at Le Réduit, a Mauritian suburb southeast of Port-Louis. The event was attended by 77 delegates from 28 African countries, varying between representatives of insurance companies, supervisory bodies and European observers.

A sponsorship committee was set up, made up of various African regional personalities representing the entire continent, including:

• René Adam, representative of the host country, Mauritius,
• Sheikh S.M. Balala, representative of East Africa,
• Hedi Ennifer, representative of North Africa,
• Ephrem Marie Mba, representative of French-speaking West Africa,
• Anthony Kobina Woode, representative of English-speaking West Africa.

The aim of this initial contact was to explore ways of boosting the market through a number of measures, including:

• promoting cooperation between the insurance markets of member states of the Organization of African Unity (OAU),
• finding solutions to the problem of insurance capacity in Afria,
• the possible creation of an African Insurance Congress,
• the project to set up an African reinsurance company,
• the establishment of a framework for dialogue between African States on common issues.

Focusing on exchange and communication, the meeting also provided an opportunity to present data from 32 African insurance markets ⁽¹⁾.

The proceedings culminated in the adoption of a few resolutions focusing on two points:

• The establishment of a first technical committee made up of 12 delegates tasked to consider the project for the founding of a regional or even pan-African reinsurance company.
• The establishment of a second technical committee dedicated to training and made up of delegates from the same countries.

In the end, the talks led to the establishment of the foundations of the African Insurance Organization.

⁽¹⁾ Algeria, Cameroon, People's Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda and Zambia were among the markets presented at the meeting.

Second meeting, 1973

Having paved the way for joint collaboration in Mauritius in 1972, the second round of talks held in Nairobi, Kenya, from 25 to 29 June, 1973 led to the official establishment of the African Insurance Organization (AIO).

Following this event, the first AIO General Assembly was held in Nairobi on the theme of “Organization and operation of insurance companies”.

Tom Okelo-Odongo, Chairman of the Board of Kenya Re, became the organization's Secretary General.

Third meeting, 1974

It was at the third conference, held in Yaoundé (Cameroon) in 1974, that the AIO statutes were adopted. Kabisi Pene Yemba Milanga, General Manager of the Société Nationale d'Assurances (SONAS), based in the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire), was appointed the first Honorary Secretary General.

The 1983-1985 period

In July 1983, in Libreville, Gabon, the AIO set up its first insurance pool, the “African Aviation Pool”, a significant step forward in insurance cooperation on an African scale.

Eleven years after its foundation, in 1984, the AIO's headquarters were transferred from Nairobi (Kenya) to Douala (Cameroon). Following an agreement with the Cameroon government, this Central African country became the Organization's permanent headquarters, marking the start of a new phase of stability and growth for the organization.

It was also during 1984 that Martha Rene, Managing Director of SACOS, Seychelles, became the first woman president of the AIO for the 1984-1985 period.

From 1995 to the present day

1995 was the year when the first African Reinsurance Forum was held in Lomé, Togo, a new meeting place dedicated to African reinsurance and its various issues (reinsurance challenges, capacity, renewal, etc.).

In 1997, the AIO celebrated its 25^th anniversary in Cairo, Egypt, with the organization now boasting over 200 members from both within and outside the African market.

In 2005, in partnership with UNCTAD and the World Bank, AIO set up the African Center for Catastrophe Risks (A.C.C.R), based in Casablanca, Morocco.

In 2016, AIO reached a new milestone in its mission to produce and disseminate knowledge with the release of its first annual “African Insurance Pulse” publication. The study takes stock of trends and prospects in the African insurance market.

Since then, AIO has published two annual research papers.

In 2019, AIO unveiled its strategic plan for the 2019-2024 period.

In 2022, the African organization celebrated its 48^th anniversary in Nairobi, with now over 380 affiliated members. In the same year, the pan-African organization signed the Nairobi Declaration on Sustainable Insurance.

In 2023, the institution's 49^th Conference, held in Algiers, set a new attendance record, with 1 600 professionals showing up. This figure illustrates the growing importance of the organization on the African scene. The Algiers meeting also witnessed the creation of two new structures: the African Insurance Women's Association (AIWA) and the African Network of Insurance Associations (ANIA).

In 2024, the 50^thconference, held in Windhoek (Namibia), saw the election of Patty Karuaihe-Martin as the organization's sixth female president in its 52-year history. During the same conference, the AIO adopted a new strategic plan for the 2024-2028 period, reaffirming the organization's missions and outlining its future direction.

Chronology of key events

• 1972
  - First meeting of AIO founders in Port-Louis, Mauritius
  - Conference held on the theme: Organization and operation of insurance companies
• 1973
  Official establishment of the AIO and holding of the first Annual General Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya
• 1974
  - Adoption of the AIO statutes at the third meeting, held in Yaoundé, Cameroon
  - Kabisi Pene Yemba Milanga, becomes first Honorary Secretary General
• 1981
  Yosef Assefa is appointed Secretary General. He held this position for 24 years
• 1983
  Creation on 19 July 1983 in Libreville, Gabon, of the AIO's first insurance pool: the African Aviation Pool
• 1984
  - Agreement signed with the government of the Republic of Cameroon. Transfer of AIO headquarters from Nairobi to Douala
  - Rena Martha, Managing Director of SACOS, Seychelles, becomes the first woman President of the AIO
• 1995
  Establishment of AIO's first African Reinsurance Forum
• 1997
  Celebration of AIO's 25th anniversary in Cairo
  The 200-member threshold is crossed
• 2005
  - Creation, in partnership with UNCTAD and the World Bank, of the African Center for Catastrophic Risks (A.C.C.R) in Casablanca
  - July : Abdallah Badaoui appointed Secretary General
  - October : Rasamoely Roland appointed Secretary General
• 2007
  Prisca Soares becomes first female Secretary General
• 2016
  Launch of Africa Insurance Pulse, AIO's first research publication
• 2019
  - Implementation of the 2019-2024 strategic plan
  - Jean Baptiste Ntukamazina appointed AIO Secretary General
• 2022
  - Celebration of the AIO's 48^th anniversary in Nairobi, Kenya
  The 380-member threshold is passed
  - Signing of the Nairobi Declaration on Sustainable Insurance
• 2023
  - Record attendance of 1600 delegates at the 49^th AIO Conference in Algiers
  - Number of members exceeded 400
• 2024
  - Adoption of a new strategic plan: 2024-2028
  - 50^th Conference held in Windhoek, Namibia
  - Election of Patty Karuaihe-Martin, sixth woman president of the AIO in its 52-year history