AXA Mansard has unveiled its first pan-African brand campaign, ‘Culture of Care,’ in Nigeria, as part of efforts to promote wider adoption of insurance and redefine protection around community support and financial security.
The initiative, launched in Lagos, is designed to spotlight everyday acts of care across African communities while linking those values to the role of formal insurance and other financial protection solutions.
Speaking virtually at the unveiling, the Chief Marketing Officer of AXA Mansard, Adebola Surakat, said the campaign was rooted in the company’s broader objective of protecting individuals, families and communities.
She said the initiative sought to recognise people whose sacrifices and support often sustain families and communities, including parents, teachers, healthcare workers, neighbours and other informal caregivers.
According to Surakat, African societies have long relied on informal mechanisms of mutual support before the emergence of modern financial institutions. She cited traditional savings arrangements such as Ajo and Esusu as examples of systems through which individuals pooled resources to meet important needs.
Surakat said the campaign would build on this longstanding tradition of collective responsibility by connecting the concept of care with formal protection mechanisms.
The Chief Executive Officer of AXA Mansard, Kunle Ahmed, said the initiative represented an attempt to extend the conversation around insurance beyond conventional underwriting and policy transactions.
He described the campaign as a broader movement centred on the question of who supports those who routinely care for others.
Ahmed said strengthening a culture of mutual protection could contribute to more resilient families and communities, while also encouraging Nigerians to view insurance as part of a wider system of social and financial security.
Also speaking at the event, the Chief Executive Officer of AXA Mansard Health, Tope Adeniyi, said the campaign was intended to stimulate discussion about human-centred protection and change perceptions about insurance.
Adeniyi argued that protection should not be viewed solely as the purchase of an insurance policy, but as a broader commitment to safeguarding people against financial and social risks.
He also pointed to Nigeria’s relatively low level of insurance penetration, noting that the figure, excluding pensions’ contribution to gross domestic product, has remained below one per cent, according to data cited at the event.
The executive said increasing coverage would require insurers to communicate the practical value of insurance more effectively and help consumers see protection as an expression of care rather than simply another expense.
Adeniyi linked the campaign to ongoing changes in Nigeria’s insurance industry, particularly reforms introduced under the Insurance Industry Reform Act 2025.
He said the recapitalisation programme should be viewed not only as a requirement for insurers to strengthen their capital base but also as an opportunity to build institutions capable of taking on larger risks, improving claims settlement and expanding access to insurance.
The campaign comes as the Nigerian insurance industry continues to face the challenge of expanding coverage among individuals and businesses that remain outside formal insurance arrangements.
AXA Mansard said the ‘Culture of Care’ initiative would seek to reinforce awareness of protection at different levels of society, from households and workplaces to businesses and communities.
The company said its broader objective was to encourage a sustained conversation around care and mutual responsibility while positioning insurance as one of the formal mechanisms through which individuals and organisations can manage risks.
The initiative is expected to form part of AXA Mansard’s wider efforts to deepen insurance awareness and participation in Nigeria and across the African market.
