London-based Insurtech Ecosystem to launch in Nairobi in July

By CORRESPONDENT, NAIROBI, Kenya, Jun 18 – Kenya is set to host the London-based InsurTech conference that is coming to Africa for the first time, in July this year.

The conference dubbed Africa 3.O is the first conference outside of London organized by MarketMinds and the event is in partnership with the UK government and will be held on 15th and 16th July, 2019.

The two-day event will provide the first platform for tech start-ups in the East African Region specifically in health, agriculture and frontier InsurTech to collaborate with incumbents to seek solutions for challenges facing the insurance sector.

The event themed ‘Sealing the Insurance Gap’ will also look at ways governments and regulators will enable insurance innovation in the region.

The move comes at a time when the insurance penetration in the continent continue to lag behind globally. The current insurance penetration in Africa stands at 3.5 percent with South Africa leading the continent with a penetration of 17 percent against a global average of 6.28 percent.

Kenya’s penetration is currently at a staggering 2.93 percent.

“We are very excited to be launching Africa 3.0 – a new insurance ecosystem – on July 15th and 16th in Nairobi with the UK Government. Africa, Kenya is a global leader in tech, we’ve got a world clbad line up and united purpose to seal the insurance gap – if you are in AgTech, HealthTech or InsurTech, this is the forum for you to partner with the leading insurance companies in the region,” said Sebastian De Zulueta Founder, Market Minds.

According to Insurance Outlook report 2018 by Delloite, the East African insurance market offers vast growth potential, although there are inefficiencies in the value chain that significantly affect shareholder returns.

The reports add that insurers should consider financing and buying InsurTech start-ups for services that include mobile technology to reduce claim adjudication time, drones to improve claim and risk evaluation; interactive websites, making real-time digital sales, IoT technology (wearables; home, car, and commercial sensors) to improve pricing, underwriting, and claims management, among others.

The event is targeting over 200 tech start-ups and investors.

“East Africa Tech start-ups will have an opportunity to pitch for funding and partnership opportunities for their businesses during the conference. An ecosystem of new partnerships between the tech sector, insurance and broader financial services is critical to deliver the enormous growth opportunities that serve the needs of the consumer and engage tech entrepreneurs, incumbents and investors alike,” de Zulueta added.

Key Speakers at the conference include: Efosa Ojomo, Global Prosperity Lead at The Clayton Christensen Institute & co-auther of The Prosperity Paradox, Rehan Butt, Group Business Director MicroEnsure, Dr. Tom Herbstein Insurance Prosperity Specialist Department for International Trade, Zach Oloo Founder and CEO Changamka MicroInsurance, Fanie Hattingh Founder and CEO Health Solutions Africa, Michael Macharg Special Advisor, International Mobilization, Babylon Health & Adelaide Odhiambo Founder and CEO Blue Wave Insurance.

Africa 3.O is the first event by MarketMinds in Africa after hosting over 30 major events in London for the last five years.