TINASHE MAKICHI
ZEP-RE (PTA Reinsurance Company) targets to underwrite business worth $20 million by the end of this year after underwriting $15 million during the first seven months of 2018.
The target by the insurance firm is premised on anticipated growth in the economy which will be catapulted by increased infrastructure projects and other economic development initiatives.
ZEP-RE is a regional organisation charged with the task of promoting trade, development and integration within the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) region through trade of insurance and reinsurance business.
The firm was created by an agreement of Heads of State and Government of the COMESA region in November 1990 in Swaziland. The insurance company has been in operation since 1993 and is headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya.
ZEP-RE regional director for Southern Africa hub Jephita Gwatipedza told Business Times that Zimbabwe was now the firm’s second largest market.
“We are seeing a lot of opportunities and everyone is positive and hopefully all these projects we have been talking about during the election campaigns will come to fruition.
If they come on board, there is a lot of engineering business and after that there is obviously going to be a lot of property business… So we see a lot of growth going forward in the insurance sector.
“The growth has been attained because of the support the company has been getting from the market. The support from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, the RBZ and other players in government has been overwhelming and we want to assure government that we are here for the long run,” Gwatipedza said.
He said the company’s revenue closed the year 2017 at $14,5 million and there was anticipation for improved earnings going into the future. Gwatipedza added that the insurance firm has also registered footprint in the Southern African nation’s real estate.
“We have already invested in real estate and we want to grow. We see a lot of opportunities in Zimbabwe and we are building our information data base so that we can identify and exploit opportunities. We want to be part of all these major infrastructure projects.”
ZEP-RE also operates regional offices in Abidjan (Cote d’Ivoire), Douala (Cameroon), Lusaka (Zambia) and Retakaful Window in Khartoum, Sudan.
ZEP-RE’s operational activities are driven by the desire to provide technical services to its client, to actively participate in and support the development of the region’s insurance and reinsurance industry
