Almond opens nominees for 2026 awards

By Rosemary Iwunze

The panel of judges for the 2026 Almond Insurance Industry Awards, led by Sir Ogala Osoka, has officially released the names of nominees across the various Award categories.

At the press conference to unveil nominees for the Awards, Chairman of the awards panel of judges, Sir Ogala Osoka, stated that 796 nominations successfully emerged across the various Award categories.

Osoka said: “The nomination exercise, which lasted for one month, attracted nominations from Insurance and Broking Firms, Corporate Organizations, Individual Clients, Government Agencies and other stakeholders across the Insurance Industry, Following a rigorous screening exercise based strictly on the Awards Criteria. While this represents a slight reduction from the 914 nominations received in 2025, the Panel noted that the figure reflects a more refined nomination process and stricter compliance with the Awards Guidelines, ensuring that only deserving individuals and organizations made the final shortlist.”

According to him, the companies and individuals that made the final cut and emerged as the nominees in this year’s Award categories for general insurance company of the year are: Rex Insurance Limited; Leadway Assurance Company Limited; Capital Express Indemnity Insurance Co Ltd; Coronation General Insurance Ltd; Fin Insurance Company Ltd; as well as Nem Insurance Plc.

For the Life Insurance Company of the year, nominees are: Leadway Assurance Co Ltd; Coronation Life Assurance Ltd; Capital Express Assurance Company Limited; Heirs Life Assurance Limited; Stanbic Ibtc Life Insurance Ltd; as well as Mutual Benefits Life Assurance Ltd.

For the Insurance Broking Company of the year, the nominees are: Scib Nigeria & Co Ltd; Ark Insurance Brokers; Stanbic Ibtc Insurance Brokers; Glanvill Enthoven Insurance Brokers; Fbn Insurance Brokers; as well as Hogg Robinson Nigeria Ltd.

For Insurance CEO of the year, the nominees are: Mr Gboyega Lesi MD/CEO, Leadway Assurance Company Ltd; Mrs Ebelechukwu Nwachukwu, MD/CEO, Rex Insurance Ltd; Mr Stephen Alangbo MD/CEO, Cornerstone Insurance Plc; Mr Adewale Koko, MD/CEO, Capital Express Indemnity Insurance Ltd; Mr Olamide Olajolo, MD/CEO, Coronation General Insurance Ltd; as well as Mrs Adaobi Nwakuche, MD/CEO, Veritas Kapital Assurance Plc.

For Insurance Woman of the year, the nominees are: Mrs Ebelechukwu Nwachukwu, MD/CEO, Rex Insurance Limited; Dr Adaobi Nwakuche, MD/CEO, Veritas Kapital Assurance Plc; Mrs Adetutu Arusiuka, Deputy President, Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN); Mrs Muibat Jimoh, Executive Director, Coronation Life Assurance Ltd; Mrs Abimbola Akinloye, Head of Underwriting, Cornerstone Insurance Plc; as well as Mrs Mary Adeyanju, MD/CEO, Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Limited.

For Micro Insurance company of the year, the nominees are: Casava Microinsurance Ltd; Lifeguard Microinsurance Ltd; Prudent Choice Microinsurance Ltd; Ally Microinsurance Ltd; Goxi Microinsurance Ltd; as well as New Dawn Microinsurance Ltd.

For Takaful Insurance company of the year, the nominees are: Noor Takaful Insurance Ltd; Hilal Takaful Insurance Ltd; Jaiz Takaful Insurance Ltd; Crown Takaful Insurance Ltd; as well as Salam Takaful Insurance Ltd.

For Insurance Broker of the year, the nominees are: Mr Solanke Ogunlana, MD/ CEO, Scib Nigeria & Co Ltd; Mr Kayode Awogboro, MD/CEO, Ark Insurance Brokers Ltd; Dr Olasupo Falana, MD/CEO, Glanvill Enthoven Insurance Brokers; Mrs Enitan Solarin, MD/CEO, Yoa Insurance Brokers Ltd; Mr Saheed Egbeyemi, MD/CEO, Hogg Robinson Nig Ltd; as well as Dr (Mrs) Funmi Babington-Ashaye, MD/CEO, Risk Analyst Insurance Brokers Limited.

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For the most valuable Insurance Customer of the year, the nominees are: Dangote Group; NNPC Limited; Air Peace Limited; Central Bank Of Nigeria; Hitech Construction Company Limited; M. L. Lee Group of Companies; as well as Pricewater House Cooper Nigeria (Pwc).

Chairman of the Awards Panel of Judges, Sir Ogala Osoka, stated that winners in the various categories will be determined through a combination of public votes (10%), the Judges’ assessment (10%), and Industry Data (80%).

He said: “In the continuation of efforts to preserve the credibility and integrity of the Awards, the OneTime Password (OTP) verification system introduced during the previous edition will once again be deployed throughout this year’s voting exercise to eliminate duplicate Voting. The Panel therefore encourages nominees, their clients, colleagues and members of the public to participate by casting their votes via the Awards website: www.almondinsuranceindustryawards.com.

“Voting will close on the 6th of September 2026 to allow the Awards Panel conclude its final assessment ahead of the 2026 Almond Insurance Industry Awards and Consumers’ Nite which will hold at the Stable Event center, Surulere Lagos, on the 6th of November, where the winners will be unveiled in an evening dedicated to celebrating excellence within Nigeria’s Insurance Industry.

“The purpose of the awards remains unchanged; recognizing and rewarding the outstanding efforts of the men and women across the different arms of the industry who work tirelessly to promote and sell insurance, often in challenging circumstances, as well as companies leading the change in their operations and delivering value to stakeholders.”