• Other

Accessibility made easy

Justicia Shipena

On 19 July, Sanlam officially opened its new offices in Windhoek. The office is located at Wanaheda in Katutura along Independence Avenue.

According to Sanlam Group CEO Tertius Stears the new Sanlam Katutura office will provide all the services the major offices around the country have.

"We are here now and we are committed to serving this community with the best services," he said.

Stears added they are at the forefront of coming up with innovative products that respond to the needs of customers. Additionally, a few months ago, Stears said they introduced a new product called Life Plan in Oshakati.

This plan offers cover benefits of between N$500 000 and N$5 million at affordable premiums.

He said one can now get life cover up to N$5 million without the hassle of medical testing and the product also offers 20% cashbacks of all premiums paid every five years.

"This means that for every five years you get back one year's premiums," he said.

Stears also explained that a vital feature of the Life Plan is that from the age of 65 you don't have to pay any more premiums, but remain covered.

He said Sanlam has recruited over 30 employees through its newly launched offices in Outapi, Katima Mulilo and Katutura.

Speaking on behalf of deputy finance minister Natangwe Iithete, Penda Ithindi, a technical economic adviser to the finance minister, said for the past three years we have witnessed sluggish private sector investment flow and expansion in the domestic economy, which contributed to economic activity that is below potential growth.

"Private investment is estimated to have contracted by approximately 22.8%, on average, over the past three years," said Ithindi.

He added that the African head of states and governments launched the operational phase of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) in Niamey, Niger earlier this month, signaling the opening of a free-trade market opportunity of about 1.2 billion people and 55 states with a combined GDP of US$2.5 trillion.

"The free-trade area presents opportunities for increased intra-Africa trade in goods and services," he said.

According to Ithindi, Sanlam Namibia has made vital investments in the domestic economy, hence direct employment by Sanlam stands at 1 009 employees.

"The opening of this office branch brings with it an additional six jobs," he said.

He added that a recent survey indicated that financial inclusion has expanded to more than 70% of the population, resulting in considerable variations across market segments and quality indicators.

"Namibia's insurance penetration of about 5.5% is above the global average of 3.4%; this coverage ratio can be improved through expanded access and relevant and affordable insurance products and services," he said.

City of Windhoek councillor Ananias Niizimba said the Katutura branch shows a desire to develop the city and provide services to people, regardless of where they live.

"It make sense for Sanlam to open an office branch in Katutura, as Windhoek has the largest population and the bulk of that population reside in Katutura," he said.

Niizimba said he is confident that the community will benefit from Sanlam's corporate social responsibility.