Diamond Trust Bank Uganda and Jubilee Life Insurance Company Limited have launched Jubilee Venture Plan, a new product designed to diversify investment options in Uganda.
The plan offers a shorter investment duration, allowing customers to save for specific future financial goals such as purchasing land, constructing a home, pursuing real estate ventures among others.
The Jubilee Venture Plan also offers savers the added benefit of building a substantial fund that provides financial support to their loved ones in case of their passing.
The product announcement was made on Tuesday, at a reward ceremony of DTB Bancassurance agents who surpassed their targets in the first quarter of 2024.
The seven winners, who booked a total of UGX1.2Billion, were awarded an all-expenses-paid trip to Cape Town, South Africa.
Bancassurance has increasingly become a key revenue stream for the insurance industry, as recent trends indicate.
In 2023, the industry recorded UGX179.5 billion in gross written premiums, marking a 9.9% increase from UGX142.7BN in 2022.
Specifically, Jubilee bancassurance individual life contributed UGX45Billion gross written premium to this total in 2023.
“We must regularly review and improve our value chain to make sure it works well and find ways to increase efficiency. Bancassurance has proven to be a valuable channel for reaching a broader audience, leveraging the extensive network of banks to increase insurance accessibility,” said Kumar Sumit Gaurav, CEO Jubilee Life Insurance.
With the banks boasting of approximately 25M accounts, Godfrey Sebaana, CEO DTB, asserts that banks are not just channels for selling insurance but key stakeholders in expanding financial services access to Ugandans.
As of 2021, insurance penetration in East Africa stands at 1.2% across the region, with Kenya at 2.2%, Tanzania at 0.6%, and Uganda at 0.8%.
Despite this, Uganda’s insurance sector experienced steady growth of 11.29% in 2023, with total premiums increasing from UGX 1.4 trillion in 2022 to UGX 1.6 trillion in 2023.
“We view this as a glass half full. While insurance penetration presents challenges, there is notable growth in written premiums. For example, life insurance premiums grew nearly 30% from UGX 501.6 billion in 2022 to UGX 611.4 billion in 2023. This growth is one of the reasons we are celebrating and rewarding our bancassurance agents for their outstanding performance.”
“The low insurance penetration underscores the significant growth potential, as the market is still unsaturated. By leveraging synergies within the finance sector, there is considerable opportunity for further expansion,” noted Kumar.
With a minimum premium of UGX100,000, the Jubilee Venture Plan provides an opportunity for investment growth with competitive guaranteed returns and additional built-in inbuilt benefits.