|
Insurance firm makes headway
2007-05-13 09:33:11
By Correspondent Michael Haonga
An international insurance firm has shattered the myth of some investors who think Tanzanians cannot deliver or even surpass expatriates in exemplary performance.
Sixty five out of 70 employees of Phoenix Tanzania Assurance Limited are Tanzanians, who have been instrumental in the firm`s success over a seven-year period.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with this newspaper yesterday, the firm`s General Manager, Subhash Wadhawan, said over the 2000-2006 period, the company has recorded many successes.
This, he said, shattered the myth that nationals cannot deliver as much as, or even better than foreigners.
On underwriting, for instance, he said profits rose from 108m/= in 2000 to 1,049m/= by the end of last year, with investment income rising to 1,290m/= from 48m/= at inception .
As for profit before tax, he said it has risen from 131m/= to 1905m/= and after taxation it stood at 124m/= and 1330m/=.
In terms of growth over the period, he said the company experienced a gross premium rise from 2007m/=in 2000 to 12,422m/= by December 2006.
Wadhawan said as for premium earned during the period, it rose from 455m/= in 2000 to 5,339m/= last year whereas staff strength rose from just 24 to 70 employees with branches increasing from just one in Dar es Salaam to six --Dar es Salaam, Mwanza, Iringa, Arusha, Kariakoo and Morogoro.
He said presently the company looks forward to having branches in districts covering the whole country with a possibility of expanding insurance coverage from the present two- fold modality that also covers estates to multi-fold coverage that includes reaching other business oriented activities in agriculture and tourism.
``... Our paid up capital has increased from 500m/= to 3,150m/= over the corresponding period with total assets increasing from 1,201m/=to 14,342m/= whereas shareholders fund went up from 624m/= in 2000 to 4,352m/= over the corresponding period,`` he said.
On the firm`s network, he revealed that apart from being the oldest insurance company in the region since 1912, they are in Tanzania , Kenya, Uganda, and Rwanda.
He added plans are afoot to venture into Zambia and Burundi.
|
