ADAM SAMIE CEO of Lion of Africa

South Africa today is a middle-income, emerging market with abundant natural resources and well-developed public and private sectors. The JSE ranks among the ten largest exchanges in the world, and South Africa’s per capita GDP positions the country within the 50 wealthiest nations. In addition, the rand is one of the best performing and most actively traded currencies worldwide. Large income gaps and a dual economy designate South Africa as developing, but post-apartheid reforms and empowerment initiatives are gaining ground.

Insurance plays a vital role in the economy of any country. Essentially, insurers underwrite risks that enable new investments to be undertaken or existing developments to expand, allowing communities to recover and inspiring confidence in new ventures. Lion of Africa Insurance Company is the leading black-owned and managed short-term insurer in the country. It represents a new breed of insurer, founded on the premise of empowerment and insurance solutions for all South Africans. To date, Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) has primarily been concerned with acquiring assets in existing businesses. Lion of Africa, however, is a rare example of a grassroots BEE business that has grown into a substantial operation. Now in its sixth year of operation, it is on track to writing more than R750 million ($108 million) of gross premium income for 2006.

“The economic empowerment of black people is not a luxury, it’s an economic imperative,” says the company’s CEO and driving force, Adam Samie. “The terrain of struggle has moved from the political level to the economic field. The more you spend on the development of people and bringing people into the market, the more customers you bring on board.”