BY CHILDIMA AGU—In a bid to improve human capital development in West African Insurance industry, the West African Insurance Companies Association (WAICA), in partnership with Posterity Thinkers and Blue Alliance, has launched a new Masterclass Sustainability Training Programme.
The announcement was signed by Davis Yasere on behalf of WAICA’s executive leadership.
The training, aimed at building the skills of insurance professionals across the region to manage climate risk and unlock new opportunities.
The programme is designed to equip insurers with the knowledge, tools and practical skills needed to navigate the evolving landscape of sustainability, climate risk and climate finance.
Posterity Thinkers will serve as lead partner, providing strategic leadership, coordination, institutional strengthening and climate-finance expertise, while Blue Alliance will act as technical partner, delivering specialised expertise in sustainability reporting, IFRS S1/S2, ESG, carbon accounting, decarbonisation and net-zero strategies.
WAICA noted that the timing of the initiative reflects growing regulatory and market pressures facing the sector. IFRS S1/S2 and other sustainability reporting standards are shifting from voluntary best practice to regulatory expectations across WAICA member jurisdictions, while climate change is increasingly affecting underwriting, claims, investments, asset values and business continuity.
Early capability-building, the Association, noted can strengthen insurers’ competitiveness, attract investment and open the door to innovative insurance solutions.
The programme is built around seven strategic objectives: building foundational capacity in sustainability and reporting; facilitating readiness for IFRS S1/S2 and emerging regulations; strengthening climate-risk management; embedding ESG into strategy, governance and investment; developing climate-finance capacity; enabling competitive positioning against international standards; and creating long-term resilience beyond one-off training.
Describing the training as a platform for lasting impact that will support market leadership, member retention and growth, regulatory advocacy, international standing, regional integration, revenue diversification and institutional strengthening.
The training will draw on a range of reference frameworks, including central banks’ directives, IFRS S1/S2, GSE ESG standards, the GHG Protocol, PCAF and ISO 50002:2014.
