The Nation Newspaper

Tag: STI

  • Experts seek global solution to rising STI cases

    Experts seek global solution to rising STI cases

    Health experts have called for global collaboration to tackle the increasing cases of sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

    The experts spoke during a webinar, titled: STIs: Global Trends and Prevention Interventions, organised by the International AIDS Society (IAS), where they discussed the urgent need for effective interventions to combat the spread of STIs worldwide.

    They said it was important for stakeholders to focus on prevention strategies as well as promote safe sexual practices, increase access to testing and treatment, and destigmatise sexual health conversations.

    Comprehensive sex education, condom access, and regular screenings were identified as key components of these strategies.

    The webinar was moderated by a Professor of Paediatrics and Medicine at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in the United States, Renata Sanders, and a Research Scientist at the University of Washington in the United States, Rodney Perkins.

    Read Also: Activities paralysed in government institutions as Oyo NLC, TUC, join strike

    It featured insights from global experts on rising STI rates, the efficacy of post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), challenges in women’s STI prevention, advancements in gonorrhea vaccines, and the impact of preventive strategies, such as San Francisco’s citywide rollout of DoxyPEP.

    According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), over 1 million curable STIs are acquired daily by individuals aged 15 to 49, with most cases being asymptomatic.

    In 2020, there were an estimated 374 million new cases of curable STIs, including chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and trichomoniasis. In 2022, around 8 million people in this age group were infected with syphilis.

  • STI prioritises technology for efficiency

    Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc has prioritised technology for the firm’s growth, its Managing Director Mr. Olaotan Soyinka, has said.

    He made this known in a statement to reporters in Lagos.

    Soyinka, who said the underwriting firm held a retreat in Lagos, stated that more than ever, the firm is set to take optimal advantage of what technology brings to the table in driving operational efficiency.

    He posited that the business model currently being run by the firm is customer-centric as it has been identified that the customer is supreme in the everyday operations of the underwriting firm.

    STI’s Head of Information Communication Technology (ICT), Mr. Lekan Oguntunde added: ‘’Any forward-looking organisation must have real time, cutting-edge technology at the fulcrum of its business operations and that is what Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc has adopted in pushing the frontiers of its operations beyond the shores of the country”.

    He noted that the company has identified that 21st century technology is the hallmark and arrow-head of any successful business.

    He said: “This has informed the company’s adoption of the second-to-none business application software in the insurance industry known as Eskadenia in 2009 with several upgrades over the years to ensure seamless service delivery that will delight the teeming customers of the underwriting firm. The software was developed using an Object-Oriented programming language which was designed to automate the General Insurance policy life cycles of the company’s customers, reduce operational gridlock, enhance job quality, maintain up-to-date historical data on all businesses generated while ensuring high level of customer confidentiality and security.

    “In order to meet all the functional specifications and technical capabilities as required by our customers, all necessary enhancements have been made on the Eskadenia software to accommodate the recent changes and ensure the successful execution of the new business model. We believe that tapping into modern technology can yield plethora of opportunities for any upwardly mobile organisation”.

    The company’s spokesperson, Mr. Segun Bankole, said in furtherance of the implementation of the adopted business model, technology, the social media platforms would be employed in reaching out to the insuring public while at the same time use the medium to sensitise Nigerians both home and abroad on the benefits of taking up an insurance policy with the company.

    STI will continue to provide insurance and financial risk- based management solutions that will strategically position the company as a market leader in the industry and consequently impact on the fortunes of its teeming customers and shareholders alike, he added.

  • STI pays N4.2b

    Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc has settled claims to the tune of N4.24 billion to various insured spread across the country in 2018, the Managing Director of the underwriting firm, Mr. Olaotan Soyinka, has said.

    Soyinka, in a statement, reaffirmed the firm’s commitment and capacity to honour all genuine claims as and when due.

    He said the company has put in place a friendly-claim-process with the sole aim of putting smiles on the faces of its various customers across the country by ensuring that claims are settled within the shortest possible time on completion of all necessary documentation.

    He said: ‘’Our commitment to uphold the tenets of our Vision and Mission has made the company one of the country’s most relevant and responsive insurance companies in the country. STI is no doubt a formidable force to reckon with in the Nigerian insurance landscape with a network of offices spread over 18 locations in the country.”

    The company’s spokesperson and Head of Corporate Communication & Brand Management, Segun Bankole said the claims experience in 2018 was quite humungous, attributing it to the downturn in the economy.

    “The summary of the claims paid in 2018 shows that Energy had the highest figure of N2.1 billion with Fire Insurance ranking second with total claims settled to the tune of N664 million. Motor Insurance claims amounted to N567 million while Marine & Aviation claims stood at N447 million. The total sum of N333 million was paid as claims on General Accident Policy with Engineering closing the figures with N41 million, bringing the total claims paid to N4.2 billion.”

    Also commenting, the Executive Director, Technical Operations, Mr. Jude Modilim, said there is no compromise to genuine claims settlement in the company.

  • STI holds management retreat

    Sovereign Trust Insurance (STI) Plc has held  a Management Retreat/Budget Session in its quest for greater performance and sustainable profitability  in 2019, the Managing Director, Mr. Olaotan Soyinka has said.

    He made this known in a statement made available to reporters in Lagos.

    According to him, the retreat, which held in Lagos, brought together all top management staff and heads of revenue-generating units of the company across the country for a two-day intensive discourse on the way forward for the organisation in the coming year.

    He said the performance and challenges faced by the organisation in 2018 formed part of the highlights of the session, which was also used in celebrating the company’s feat of meeting and surpassing the 2018 target of N10.1 billion in the history of the underwriting firm, a feat considered by many as very unprecedented in a year that was characterised by so many operational uncertainties.

    He urged his colleagues to be more committed to meet the target for 2019 and, if possible, surpassed it.

    He centered his plea on the accomplishments for the organisation in the coming year.

    He enjoined them not to relent in their quest of wanting to make the STI brand one of the most preferred and patronised brands in the industry.

  • STI grows premuim by 27 %

    Sovereign Trust Insurance(STI) Plc has continued in its growth trajectory as the firm grows its Gross Premium Written(GPW) in the third quarter ofthe year by 27 per cent above what was generated in the same period last year.

    The firm recorded a growth of N2 billion, from N7.3 billion to N9.3 billion.

    This was made known in a statement signed by the firm’s Head of Corporate Communications and Brand Management, Segun Bankole in Lagos.

    The statement reads: “Net Premium rose from N3.5 billion to N4.1 billion in the third quarter of 2018, representing 17 per cent increase.  Total assets also increased by 7 per cent in the quarter under review from N9.7 billion to N10.4 billion.

    “As expected of an underwriting firm that has generated more business than it did in the previous quarter of 2017, the claims expense of the company slightly increased by two per cent from N1.2 billion in the third quarter of 2017 to N1.3 billion in the same quarter of 2018.

    “Consequently, the Profit before Tax deepened by 16 per cent from N716million to N601million in Q3 of 2018.There was a decline also in the Profit after Tax from N667million to N543milion, representing a 19 per cent decrease in the quarter.

    ‘’STI is really poised to ending the year on a very positive note going by the recent trend of its consistent growth rate. With this result, it is almost certain that the firm will close the 2018 financial year on a two-digit billion figure by all indications; a feat that will be considered historical for the more than two decades firm that is yet to hit that mark.”

  • UBA, FBN General, STI, others to sponsor confab

    United Bank for Africa  (UBA Plc), FBN General Insurance and Sovereign Trust Insurance are among sponsors of the inaugural Lagos State Petroleum Marketers Safety Conference slated for September 18 to 20.

    The event, being coordinated by an industry Safety consultant, Bendeb Sylmar Associates, in collaboration with Lagos State Safety Commission, is aimed at gathering industry experts, regulators and government to a roundtable to discuss how to enhance productivity in handling petroleum products

    The conference is expected to set the tone for an enhanced policy articulation and deliberation on safety as it concerns the petroleum sector and its entire value chain.

    Bendeb Sylmar Associates Chief Executive Officer, James Akin Ashokeji, said the conference would be a rallying point in the industry, adding that the deal with Lagos State could create an avenue for cross fertilisation of ideas, set agenda and define the space for petroleum industry in the state.

    He said: “Top speakers and international facilitators have indicated interest to participate, while key industry leaders and thought leaders in petroleum sector are billed to expand the discussions and chart a new narrative in the industry.

    “The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr Emmaneul Ibe Kachikwu is the guest of honour;  Chairman House Committee on Petroleum Resources, Downstream, Hon. Akinlaja Joseph is the guest speaker. Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode is the Chief Host.

  • STI, MD get award

    Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc (STI) and its Managing Director, Olaotan Soyinka, have won the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Company of the Year and Insurance Man of the Year for 2017 awards.

    It was all at the Business-Today Online Media Awards.

    The event, which was held at the Lagos Sheraton Hotels, Ikeja, Lagos was chaired by Dr. Akin Ogunbiyi, chairman, Mutual Benefits Group.

    Others at the event included the Acting Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom) and Chairman, Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA).  The nomination for the Insurance Man of the Year Award, according to the organisers of the event, was  open to the insuring public and other stakeholders done via voting in the social media.

    The award is in recognition of chief executives of underwriting and pension firms  who contribute to the growth of the sector, while the CSR Award is given to underwriting firms, pension organisations and other financial institutions which enhance and improve the quality of life and infrastructure in their indusries.

    In his response, Soyinka promised to work for the growth of insurance.  He said the company will not rest on its oars in upholding professionalism and adherence to corporate governance, adding that it will maintain the position of a responsible corporate entity to further project the industry.

     

  • STI promotes CSR in schools

    Sovereign Trust Insurance (STI) Plc has donated bags and other items to primary schools around its corporate Head Office in Victoria Island, Lagos.

    Its Head of Corporate Communications & Brand Management, Segun Bankole said the initiative was to commemorate  Children’s Day.

    According to him, the initiative is geared towards promoting academic excellence and good behavioural conduct among pupils in public primary schools in the country.”

    He said the initiative would go beyond the Children’s Day as the company intends to make it on-going in other locations.

    Bankole stressed that part of the criteria in determining recipients included the best pupils in Mathematics and English Language, the most punctual pupil, best behaved boy and girl, and the most improved pupil.

     

  • STI ends Q1 on growth path

    Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc (STI) has started the 2018 financial year with a Gross Written Premium of N5.2 billion as against the N4.1 billion that was written in the same period in 2017, representing an increase in growth rate of 25.7 per cent.

    This was made known in a statement by the firm’s Assistant General Manager, Corporate Communications & Brand Management, Olusegun Bankole, in Lagos.

    According to the statement, the underwriting firm posted Gross Premium Written of N8.5 billion in its financial year-end 2017 as against the N6.3 billion written in 2016.

    The statement read: “Another positive highlight of the 2018 first quarter performance of the firm is in its underwriting profit which increased by N182 million from N746 million in the first quarter of 2017 to N928 million in the same corresponding period giving a growth rate of 24.5 per cent.

    “The Profit before Tax hit a 28 per cent increase as it grew from N488 million in the first quarter of 2017 to N625 million in the same period of 2018 while Profit after Tax also leapt from N437 million in the first quarter of 2017 to N560 million in the first quarter of 2018, representing a growth rate of 28 per cent as well”, it added.

     

     

     

  • STI to host golfers

    Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc is set to host the sixth edition of its eponymous Open Golf Tournament in conjunction with Ibadan Golf Club in the ancient city of Ibadan, Oyo State. The tournament will run from March 23 to 25 as part of the company’s contribution to the development.

    In a statement, the spokesperson for the organisation, Segun Bankole, said STI has a very unique and dynamic qualities as an underwriting firm which is worth showcasing to the golfing community and golfers alike during the three-day event and beyond.

    According to him, the company has evolved over time, having been established over two decades ago  and  has become a very vibrant, youthful, and upwardly mobile brand which has kept up with pacesetting initiatives in the insurance industry in Nigeria over the years.

    One of the patrons of Ibadan Golf Club and a golfer, Chief Babajide Olatunde-Agbeja of Boff & Co.Insurance Brokers, lauded STI for staying true and showing commitment to sponsoring the tournament in the last six years of its commencement.

    He said: “STI has consistently shown unwavering commitment to the promotion of sporting activities and the development of young talents in different areas of human endeavour in the country over a period of time now.