Focus Media (Kigali)
Ann Christine Ishimwe
15 May 2008
opinion
Afrika Risk, an insurance company registered in Rwandan, last week signed a partnership agreement with Belgian health insurance brokers RV Assurance (RVA) to offer Rwandans foreign hospitalization insurance.
Alphonse Mukama Kayinga, the managing director of Afrika Risk, explained that the deal will allow his company to add another service to its wide range of insurance packages, and will enable Rwandan to get specialized medical treatment in Europe, Asia, North America, South Africa etc.
"Our hospitals do not have all the facilities and staff to handle major illnesses, so Rwandans were forced to pay large sums of money to get specialized treatment from hospitals abroad.
This product will cover those insured with us to get the medical treatment needed from any of these countries," the managing director said, adding Afrika Risk's current health insurance only dealt health care and hospitalization in Rwanda itself.
Jean François Desmare, the Chief executive officer of RVA, pointed out that Afrika Risk Rwanda was the first insurance company in Africa they chose to invest in.
"Two years ago, I came to the country for the Mille Collines rally, and I was impressed with the cleanliness of Rwanda, its friendly and hardworking people, as well as the technological progress the country is making. That prompted me to opt for Rwanda."
"We feel that the young population here has the power to resolve problems, considering the terrible past of the country, and that they are clever and quick enough to make change; so this gave us the idea to invest in Afrika risk," Desmare said.
The CEO further remarked that the partnership with Africa Risk will enable them to take an active part in the company. He explained that in Belgium, employee motivation is very important as it actually determines a company's image towards customers.
"We chose Afrika Risk because we know that they take proper care of their employees, so it is the first African company to get our health care product," Jean François Desmare said.
To him, the benefits of the new service to Rwandans are obvious. "You no doubt have mutuelle de santé (health insurance) here, but it does not insure you for major health problems, which force people to go abroad for specialized medical care. This product that ARV has now given to Afrika Risk, will cover such risks," Desmare explained.
The Belgian insurer further remarked that not only Rwandan nationals, but also foreigners living in the country could subscribe to the service, since it is a universal product.
One important condition, however, is that people who apply for this insurance need to be in good health, because they protect for the future, not the past.
Asked whether in his view Rwandans would be able to afford this insurance, he recognized that not everyone will be in a position to apply for it. "We are an insurance company, and we need sufficient premiums to be able to pay our clients' claims; so we cannot just say that we are going to insure all Rwandans," the CEO of RVA said.
The managing director of Afrika Risk, Alphonse Mukama Kayinga, however pointed out that they are of the assumption that given the rapid growth of the Rwandan economy, people's income will increase accordingly, and little by little more Rwandans will have access to the insurance.
Kayinga also remarked that there are more advantages to the partnership than just a new insurance product, since it will strengthen young insurance brokers of Rwanda as well as boost their activities and improve their service delivery through the training offered by RVA.
Moreover, it will provide employment opportunities.
And for the Belgian enterprise too, there will be more to gain, since they see the partnership as a springboard to other African countries. "First, we want to solidify our operations in Rwanda," Jean François Desmare said. "But afterwards, we count on investing in other countries, starting with Burundi."
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 Focus Media. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
