Nigeria's Senate on Tuesday backed a bill to rebrand the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) as the Insurance Regulatory Commission, marking a major step in overhauling the country's insurance oversight framework. The chamber voted overwhelmingly in favour after the Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions presented its report.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio announced the passage through a voice vote. The measure, steered by committee chairman Tokunbo Abiru and other panel members, seeks to modernise how the nation regulates insurance.
Abiru told the chamber that the current name had grown stale and fails to capture what NAICOM actually does in today's insurance market. "The existing designation no longer accurately reflects the commission's regulatory mandate in light of the evolution of Nigeria's insurance industry," he said.
The apex regulator enforces insurance laws, maintains market stability and shields policyholders. Beyond renaming, the bill strengthens enforcement teeth across the sector.
Abiru explained the law imposes tougher consequences for wrongdoing, including steeper fines, licence suspensions and lifetime bans from the industry for those responsible when insurance firms collapse. The measure also sharpens the commission's supervision, inspection and intervention powers to tackle fresh challenges.
One key change ditches the old rule requiring the finance minister's blessing before removing or appointing directors at troubled insurers. This speeds up crisis response in failing institutions.
The new law also requires the finance minister to set up a temporary management board for the commission within 30 days when the current governing board's term ends. It expands NAICOM's mandate to cover effective administration, regulation, control, integrity and growth of insurance business nationwide.
Lawmakers moved into Committee of the Whole after the presentation to examine each clause carefully before green-lighting the bill for third reading. The chamber then voted to pass it.
Akpabio praised Abiru after the vote, pledging that parliament would keep pushing reforms to build "a stronger and more effective" insurance sector than the one it inherited. The bill now heads to the House of Representatives for final approval before going to President Bola Tinubu for signing into law.
