Nairobi — Old Mutual Limited is in the process of selling its Tanzania unit to a minority shareholder, pending regulatory approval.

The sale is part of the Old Mutual Group's immediate-to-long-term strategic review.

"We have evaluated various options to attaining market leadership in Tanzania, however, we no longer see a clear path to achieving this strategic objective," Old Mutual Holdings CEO Arthur Oginga said.

"We believe that the various options require substantial further investment and carry significant risk to attaining the objectives of market leadership and real returns in the medium term," Oginga added.

"As a result, we have decided to sell our stake in our short-term insurance business to Strategic Ventures Company Limited, a grouping from the existing minority shareholders of UAP Insurance Tanzania Limited."

However, the pan-African insurer intends to partner with local players in Tanzania to offer medical insurance products and services through the Kenyan unit.

UAP Insurance Tanzania expects the sale not to impact policies in Tanzania.

"We are communicating with our customers and key stakeholders, and the reassurance we are giving is that they can expect continued excellent service."