By Oluyinka Onigbinde
Nigeria’s marine insurance industry must build stronger domestic capacity and develop products that reflect the realities of modern multimodal supply chains if the Nigeria Insurance Industry Reform Act 2025 (NIIRA 2025) is to achieve its objectives, industry experts have said.
The experts spoke on Thursday at the Nigeria Marine Insurance Forum 2026 Virtual Summit, organised by Akabogu & Associates, where maritime and insurance stakeholders examined the implications of the new insurance regime for cargo owners, insurers, shipping companies and logistics operators.
The forum focused on the changing nature of maritime risks, particularly as cargo movement increasingly extends beyond the traditional sea route to include ports, terminals, barges, trucks, warehouses and other logistics points.
Opening the summit, Senior Partner at Akabogu & Associates, Dr. Emeka Akabogu, SAN, described NIIRA 2025 as a major development with far-reaching implications for risk allocation, underwriting capacity, container insurance arrangements and Protection and Indemnity (P&I) cover.
Akabogu challenged stakeholders to reconsider where maritime risk actually ends in an increasingly complex supply chain.
“Are we reshaping the sector?” he asked, questioning whether maritime risk ends at the port, after cargo is loaded onto trucks or only when the shipment reaches the consignee’s warehouse.
He noted that Nigeria’s charter and freight market was estimated at about $10 billion roughly a decade ago, arguing that the size of the maritime economy underscored the need for a stronger domestic insurance ecosystem capable of retaining greater value within the country.
Also speaking, Partner at Akabogu & Associates, Mr. Victor Onyegbado, said NIIRA 2025 provides an opportunity to address structural gaps in Nigeria’s container insurance regime.
According to him, the traditional emphasis on shipping-related risks no longer reflects the realities of modern supply chains, where cargo passes through several transport and logistics modes before reaching its destination.
“Nigeria seems to be focused only on shipping risks, even though insurance cover is expanded to other modes of carriage,” he said.
A major issue examined at the forum was the transition away from traditional container deposit requirements, which have historically provided shipping lines with financial protection against container loss, damage and delayed return.
While the deposit system provided security to carriers, it also tied down importers’ funds and frequently resulted in commercial disputes.
The shift towards insurance-based protection is expected to ease the upfront financial burden on cargo interests. However, participants cautioned that the new arrangements must not simply recreate the same financial burden under a different structure.
Container detention charges also remain a major concern, with stakeholders noting that prolonged delays in returning empty containers can impose significant costs on importers, particularly where the delays are linked to congestion, inadequate infrastructure and operational inefficiencies.
The discussions consequently highlighted the close relationship between insurance reform and the broader performance of Nigeria’s logistics system.
Stakeholders pointed to challenges surrounding empty-container returns, truck turnaround times and congestion along major port corridors, noting that such problems increase cargo dwell time and expose businesses to additional costs.
They questioned how responsibility should be assigned for costs arising from operational failures within the logistics chain, particularly where cargo owners have little control over the circumstances causing delays.
The concern, they noted, becomes more significant as Nigeria intensifies efforts to improve port efficiency through digitalisation and infrastructure development.
Without corresponding improvements in port operations and logistics infrastructure, stakeholders warned that regulatory reforms alone may have limited impact on reducing the overall cost of trade.
The forum also examined Nigeria’s limited participation in the global P&I insurance market.
Despite the size of Nigeria’s maritime, offshore and energy sectors, significant marine insurance premiums have historically been placed offshore, prompting calls for stronger domestic P&I capacity.
Speakers argued that developing local P&I capacity would enable Nigerian insurers to retain more premiums within the country while creating products better suited to the needs of the local market.
They noted that Nigeria’s growing offshore, energy and maritime sectors provide an opportunity to develop such capacity, particularly as major businesses increasingly depend on maritime logistics without necessarily owning vessels.
Against this backdrop, Akabogu & Associates identified four key areas considered critical to moving NIIRA 2025 from legislation to effective market practice.
The first is greater awareness of rights and obligations created by the law, particularly provisions contained in Sections 82, 116, 203, 210 and 212.
The second is domestic capacity development, including opportunities to strengthen professional expertise through training levies under Section 216 and explore the establishment of a Nigerian P&I club under Section 200.
The third is enforcement and litigation, with participants stressing the importance of judicial interpretation through Federal High Court test cases, particularly on offshore insurance placement under Section 204 and import insurance requirements under Section 82.
The fourth is institutionalisation, involving the development of standard policy wordings, digital insurance infrastructure and stronger regional collaboration, including the proposed Nigeria-Ghana marine insurance alliance.
The stakeholders stressed that the success of NIIRA 2025 would require more than regulatory compliance, as institutions, professional expertise and market structures would have to be developed to translate the provisions of the legislation into practical commercial outcomes.
The forum also examined the growing complexity of multimodal cargo movement, where goods may pass through vessels, ports, terminals, trucks, warehouses and other logistics facilities before reaching their final destination.
This, participants said, raises questions about whether insurance protection would follow cargo throughout its journey or whether contractual and operational boundaries could create gaps in coverage.
For cargo owners and freight operators, the issue carries significant financial implications, while for insurers, the changing risk environment presents an opportunity to develop innovative products and expand Nigeria’s domestic underwriting capacity.
The summit’s central message was that legislation alone would not transform Nigeria’s marine insurance market.
Participants said effective enforcement, institutional capacity and active participation by insurers, shipping companies, freight forwarders, regulators and cargo interests would determine whether the new regime delivers its intended benefits.
For regulators, the immediate task is to ensure consistent application of the framework, while insurers have an opportunity to capture more maritime risks and premiums locally.
For businesses involved in international trade, stakeholders said the priority remains access to reliable and predictable insurance protection across the supply chain.
They maintained that a stronger domestic marine insurance market could retain more premium value in Nigeria, deepen local expertise, improve risk management and provide greater certainty for businesses engaged in international trade.
