Iconic ‘father’ of insurance leaves good foundation

The late Simon Njoroge. Under his watch, Kenya National Assurance completed projects under budget. FILE PHOTO

What you need to know:

  • One of his former protégés said Kenya was fortunate that Ngwiri did not hoard his knowledge but instead used it to develop the nascent local industry and its professionals.
  • Mr Nelson Kuria, the retired former group chief executive of CIC Insurance Group, is one of the many leaders who received wise counsel from Ngwiri.

On April 22 this year, Kenya lost a humble and honest leader, who helped build a key pillar in the country’s financial system.

Those who worked under Simon Vincent Njoroge Ngwiri in the 1980s unequivocally acknowledge him as the iconic ‘father of the nation’s insurance industry’ and a great mentor.

He succumbed to a stroke, which he had initially suffered some time back.

Many treasure him for his impeccable integrity and unwavering desire to develop people professionally.

He did not dip his fingers in the till to appropriate for own use the billions he controlled as the boss of Kenya National Assurance Company, East Africa’s largest insurer then.

The money went into paying policyholder claims and building enduring assets like Corner House, Bima House, Protection House, Salama house, Town House (all in Nairobi), Bima Towers in Mombasa, Elgon View Estate in Eldoret and Kenya National Towers in Kisumu, among others projects.

Under his watch, Kenya National Assurance completed projects under budget.

The parastatal became Kenya Breweries’ largest single shareholder. Ngwiri was a trailblazer.

He was Kenya’s first holder of an Advanced Diploma in Insurance, having studied at the Chartered Insurance Institute, London.

He was instrumental in bringing the third World Insurance Congress to Nairobi, the first on African soil.

One of his former protégés said Kenya was fortunate that Ngwiri did not hoard his knowledge but instead used it to develop the nascent local industry and its professionals.

GREAT CAREER

He did not let the country down.

Mr Nelson Kuria, the retired former group chief executive of CIC Insurance Group, is one of the many leaders who received wise counsel from Ngwiri.

Having been an assistant manager during Ngwiri’s reign, Mr Kuria learnt firsthand how the great (“quiet but assertive”) man ran KNAC and drove it to unprecedented heights of prosperity.

“He is a hero,” Mr Kuria declared. “For those who care about integrity, Ngwiri was a role model but because our values as a society do not attach a premium to integrity, he was ignored.”

Association of Kenya Insurers’ Chief Executive Tom Gichuhi said they highly regarded Ngwiri as a manager.

“He made a huge impact on the industry because he trained people who went on to manage the industry in various capacities,” he said.

Kuria said Ngwiri’s success was ultimately his undoing because the prosperous parastatal attracted greedy people interested in plundering its resources.