The internet has been buzzing ahead of a two-day journalism workshop backed by the Africa Re Foundation, with Nigerian journalists preparing to examine how risk and insurance can become stronger lenses for reporting issues affecting society.
The workshop, organised by Insurance Publication Ltd (IPL), is expected to bring together media practitioners from different beats to explore how insurance and risk can be incorporated into everyday journalism without turning news reports into advertisements for financial products.
Journalists participating in the programme have already begun raising practical questions on how risk and insurance could be applied to reporting on climate change, politics, cybercrime, insecurity, economic hardship and other critical national issues.
One of the questions being raised is how journalists can use risk and insurance as reporting lenses across different beats while maintaining editorial independence, credibility and public interest.
According to a signed statement by Ifeanyi Ugwuadu, Project Coordinator of the All-inclusive Mass Media Seminar for Journalists and Lead Editor, Insurance Publication Ltd, the discussions are expected to challenge conventional approaches to insurance reporting.
Participants are also seeking to identify the key insurance and risk concepts that journalists should understand in 2026, particularly in a society where risks are increasingly linked to economic, environmental, technological and social challenges.
The workshop will further examine how journalists can apply what has been described as “insurance thinking” when reporting insecurity and economic hardship, moving beyond the immediate consequences of disasters and losses to examine prevention, protection and resilience.
A major question directed at the theme speaker, Professor Ismail Ibraheem of the University of Lagos, is how journalists can move beyond reporting insurance merely as a financial product and begin examining it as a critical risk-management and accountability issue.
Participants are expected to interrogate how insurance affects virtually every aspect of society and why the sector remains relatively poorly understood within mainstream Nigerian journalism.
The programme will also address the legal challenges confronting investigative journalists who report on high-risk sectors, including insurance and finance.
Dr Omogbai Omo-Eboh, a maritime and insurance lawyer, is expected to examine the intersection between media law and insurance frameworks, particularly amid concerns over defamation claims and strategic lawsuits against public participation.
The discussions are expected to consider how journalists can investigate systemic failures in corporate and government institutions while understanding the legal boundaries surrounding their reporting.
The workshop comes against the backdrop of significant changes in Nigeria’s insurance sector, including the ongoing implementation of a new regulatory and financial framework following the industry’s recapitalisation exercise.
With the theme, “The Universe of Insurance and Journalism: Risk Everywhere, in Everything,” the two-day programme is designed to break down the traditional boundaries that have confined insurance reporting largely to specialised desks.
The programme will seek to equip journalists covering education, health, transport, housing, agriculture, business, politics, crime, maritime affairs and other sectors with practical knowledge for integrating risk protection and financial resilience into their stories.
Sponsored by the Africa Re Foundation, the workshop is scheduled for September 15 and 16, 2026, with the organisers saying it is aimed at improving financial literacy among media practitioners and strengthening public understanding of insurance.
IPL said low public awareness of insurance remains a major contributor to vulnerability and a barrier to economic development, stressing that journalists have a critical role to play in shaping public understanding and influencing behaviour.
The organisation noted that insurance reporting in Nigeria has traditionally been concentrated around specialised insurance and pensions desks, leaving significant opportunities for broader coverage largely unexplored.
“Through Africa Re’s support, we are continuing engagement with journalists this September. We are set to seize the moment and crystallise a broader insurance and risk awareness era in the country and elsewhere in Africa,” the statement said.
The initiative is expected to adopt a multi-channel approach that will take insurance conversations beyond specialised news desks and platforms, with the long-term objective of making risk management part of mainstream public discourse.
The organisers said the initiative would also seek to encourage greater understanding and uptake of insurance products, promote informed public behaviour and contribute to stronger risk-management policies at federal and state levels.
The opening session will feature remarks from the Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, alongside contributions from the Commissioner for Insurance, Mr Olusegun Omosehin, and the Director-General of the National Health Insurance Authority, Dr Kelechi Ohiri.
Among the speakers is Dr Femi Oyetunji, Chairman of the Board of Directors of SanlamAllianz Life Insurance Nigeria Ltd, who will examine Nigeria’s insurance gap, the risks Nigerians carry without adequate protection and the economic opportunities that could emerge from closing the gap.
Professor Ismail Ibraheem, Professor of Journalism and Communication Studies at the University of Lagos, will serve as the theme speaker, while Dr Omogbai Omo-Eboh and Augustine Aipoh will examine the extent of risks Nigerians face without adequate protection.
The wider initiative will include beat-specific training, an interactive digital learning platform, journalist toolkits for field reporting and a monitoring framework, with implementation being advanced in partnership with stakeholders including the Nigerian Union of Journalists.
IPL said it expects the initiative to generate measurable growth in public engagement with insurance issues, stimulate wider policy discussions on risk management and contribute, over time, to improved insurance penetration in Nigeria, with the model designed for possible expansion across Africa.
Insurance Publication Ltd said its broader mission is to expand the scope of risk and insurance journalism in Nigeria and beyond by promoting inclusive reporting capable of reaching wider audiences and supporting economic resilience.
The Africa Re Foundation, the corporate social responsibility arm of the African Reinsurance Corporation, supports initiatives aimed at developing the insurance market and contributing to social and economic development across Africa.
Its interventions cover areas including risk awareness, insurance, health, education, disaster recovery, technology development, research and community development.
The African Reinsurance Corporation, meanwhile, is marking major milestones this year, including its golden jubilee and the achievement of the billion-dollar mark in premiums, underscoring its position in Africa’s reinsurance industry.