Key trends on: How the insurance sector in Eastern and Southern Africa is being impacted by and responding to COVID-19

The report details how COVID-19 caused operational disruptions, reduced premium income, and accelerated digitalization within the insurance sector in Eastern and Southern Africa. While life and health products provided some coverage, business interruption insurance largely failed to support business resilience. Insurers face prudential stability concerns and liquidity challenges, though 50% expect premium income to recover within a year.

• COVID-19 accelerated the digitalization of insurance operations, with 66% of respondents digitizing or in the process of digitizing their operations. Remote work enablement was high, with 79% investing in internet connectivity for staff and 72% providing laptops.
• Digital sales and onboarding face significant barriers; only 39% of insurers currently use electronic signatures for sales and 48% perform remote KYC onboarding. The primary obstacles are a lack of internal systems and uncertainty regarding regulatory permissions.
• The pandemic negatively impacted financial operations, with over 50% of respondents reporting reductions in new sales, premium collection, and renewals. This has led to high concerns regarding prudential stability, specifically regarding liquidity, solvency, and minimum capital requirements.
• Insurers implemented temporary relief for consumers, such as communication campaigns to clarify coverage (57%) and extended premium payment periods (44%). However, support for agents was minimal, and 24% of respondents have laid off or are laying off workers.
• Insurance coverage for COVID-19 was more prevalent in life (63% explicitly included), health (79% explicitly included), and hospitalisation (55% explicitly included) products. Conversely, business interruption and event cancellation insurance predominantly did not cover COVID-19 risks.
• Regulatory responses included providing flexibility for premium collection and enabling digital sales, but insurers are requesting further government support. Key requests include inclusion in fiscal stimulus packages (44%) and regulatory support for e-KYC and electronic signatures.

APA

FSD Africa (2020). Key trends on: How the insurance sector in Eastern and Southern Africa is being impacted by and responding to COVID-19. https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/OESAI-survey-infographic-26.08.20-2.pdf

Chicago

FSD Africa. Key trends on: How the insurance sector in Eastern and Southern Africa is being impacted by and responding to COVID-19. 2020. https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/OESAI-survey-infographic-26.08.20-2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=FSD Africa |title=Key trends on: How the insurance sector in Eastern and Southern Africa is being impacted by and responding to COVID-19 |date=June 2020 |url=https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/OESAI-survey-infographic-26.08.20-2.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fsdafrica2020key, author = {{FSD Africa}}, title = {{Key trends on: How the insurance sector in Eastern and Southern Africa is being impacted by and responding to COVID-19}}, institution = {FSD Africa}, year = {2020}, month = jun, url = {https://fsdafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/OESAI-survey-infographic-26.08.20-2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }