Nigeria’s upper legislative chamber on Tuesday passed the Insurance Regulatory Commission Bill, 2025, which seeks to establish a modern legal framework for supervising the insurance sector, strengthen regulatory oversight and align Nigeria’s insurance industry with global best practices.
If the IRS bill is passed by the House of Representatives and assented to by President Bola Tinubu, the old National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) Act, 1997 would become repealed after about 30 years in operations.
Based on its provisions, the bill, which scaled third reading after the Senate adopted the report of the Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions, the NAICOM will be renamed the Insurance Regulatory Commission and given broader powers to supervise insurance operators, enforce compliance and impose stiff penalties for regulatory violations.
Presenting the committee’s report during plenary, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions, Sen. Tokunbo Abiru, said the NAICOM Act 2027 had become obsolete and therefore not reflecting in the realities of the country’s insurance market.
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He said that the committee embarked on wide consultations with stakeholders in the risk underwriting industry, including holding a public hearing and reviewing more than 50 memoranda submitted by stakeholders, before recommending the bill for passage.
The lawmaker explained that the proposed legislation was designed to strengthen the independence of the proposed insurance regulatory commission by giving it enhanced authority to fulfil its mandate without undue interference.
Abiru, who spoke elaborately on the benefits of the bill to the insurance industry, said the commission when established would have powers to issue regulations, work with local and international regulatory bodies and intervene in distressed insurance companies to protect policyholders and preserve financial stability.
Speaking on some provisions of the bill, Abiru disclosed that the bill introduced stricter corporate governance standards by prescribing professional qualifications and fit-and-proper requirements for members of the commission’s governing board as well as tougher sanctions for regulatory breaches
This is even as he told the other lawmakers that in addition to updating the supervisory and inspection provisions to enable the regulator to respond more effectively to emerging risks and developments within the insurance sector, the bill also broadens the commission’s statutory mandate to cover the effective administration, supervision, regulation, control, integrity and development of insurance business in the country.
