Protais Ayangma, Insurer and founder of the National Insurance Company, now Saham Insurance Cameroon (2014), has just published a note on the impact of the coronavirus (Covid-19) in the insurance sector in Cameroon.
“Several branches could be more or less significantly impacted. These include transportation insurance, travel insurance, health insurance, life insurance, auto insurance, ” Protais Ayangma says.
In detail, he indicates that transport insurance (13.38% market share), particularly maritime transport (nearly 10% market share), risks experiencing a sharp decline if the health situation does not not improve. The same goes for travel insurance. However, its impact is insignificant due to its marginal contribution to turnover, according to the expert.
However, he stressed, “the automobile (26.7% of market share), a mandatory risk, may not be impacted by the Covid-19 in terms of turnover”. In addition, the limitation of travel, especially interurban, and the limitation of the number of people transported by taxis and mototaxis could have a positive effect on the loss experience of this sector whose rate was around 47.51% in 2018.
Also according to Protais Ayangma, health insurance could also not be impacted due to the exclusion by insurers of the risk of pandemic (this was already the case with AIDS) and the total coverage of care by the State. The results of this branch could be improved by the forced cessation of medical evacuations which constitute an important pocket of expenses for the insurers.
“Life insurance, for its part, should experience delays and even discontinuation of premium payments as well as major redemptions with regard to savings products (41% of life turnover). The claims should not deteriorate because the mortality rate linked to this virus is relatively low in our country, and that the insurers are slow to decide on the assumption or not of this pandemic, generally excluded from the contracts “, indicates the insurer.
In Cameroon, the insurance penetration rate, with a turnover of 207 billion FCFA, was around 0.97% in 2018, according to official figures from the National Insurance Directorate. Nevertheless, according to Ayangma, there is reason to fear a slowdown in turnover growth in this sector, which has experienced an average annual growth of 5% in recent years, and even a slight decline.
