As part of its expansion into the insurance market, BSP Subsidiary, BSP Life Insurance PNG launched its first endowment product – the Wantok Delite Life.
Wantok Delite, the first life insurance package in the country that also offers regular payouts every three years through what is known as “Survival Benefit”.
This product, the first endowment product in the PNG market since the days of Kwila Insurance.
BPNG Assistant Governor Ellison Pidik was present for the product launch and commended the BSP Life for expanding into the “Life Insurance” market through Wantok Delite.
According to Assistant Governor Pidik, this decision was one that would hopefully be a catalyst for more Papua New Guineans to take-up life insurance cover.
“We are very happy to see that this trend of development that’s coming in the area of insurance – especially life insurance,” BPNG Assistant Governor Ellison Pidik said.
“From the financial inclusion point of view where the Central Bank is promoting financial inclusion, under the National Financial Inclusion Strategy which we’ve been promoting from 2016 – one of our emphasis is to see if insurance can be promoted widely. Governor and the Bank, are very happy of what BSP Life PNG is doing to roll out this particular product that can be made available to Papua New Guineans.”
Wantok Delite – the first endowment product in PNG that has been tailored for the local market.
For BSP Life PNG Country Manager Nilson Singh, a feature that stands out through their product is the “Survival Benefit” – regular payouts every three years for those covered under this product.
With this offering, it is hoped that more Papua New Guineans can opt to take up life insurance, instead of relying on the Wantok System.
“This product is not just a protection product or a risk product – this product is a savings product as well. The intention of introducing this product is more so to enable ordinary Papua New Guineans – the job starters, small SMEs to eventually have some form of savings opportunity, ” BSP Life PNG Country Manager Nilson Singh said.
“We need to make sure that as a business, as the regulator of the BPNG perspective, we need to talk a lot about insurance.”
The launch of Wantok Delite marks the first major milestone for BSP Life PNG in expanding its reach within the difficult PNG market – a market that compared to other pacific island countries, ranks low in life insurance uptake.
According to BSP Group CEO Robin Fleming, Wantok Delite marks the first of a series of whole-of-insurance products aimed at a cross-section of the PNG populace.
By Meriba Tulo – EM TV News, Port Moresby
