The Lagos State Resilience Office (LASRO), in partnership with the Resilient Cities Network, global insurance intermediary group, Howden, and key private sector stakeholders is set to hold the Lagos Water Risk and Insurance workshop in Lagos on Wednesday, 15th and Thursday, 16th of January, 2025.
Dr. Folayinka Dania, Chief Resilience Officer for Lagos State, who disclosed this at a recent virtual meeting with stakeholders, explained that the workshop forms part of the 2024 Global Risk and Resilience Fellowship (GRRF), a global initiative designed to help cities manage climate risks by leveraging insurance sector expertise.
In her words, “The workshops will bring together public and private sector leaders to explore innovative solutions for prioritizing, addressing, and mitigating water-related risks of flooding, scarcity, and infrastructure gaps that Lagos State faces, building on the RWA and Arup’s two years of City Water Resilience Approach (CWRA) work in Lagos aimed at shaping the city’s water resilience strategy. The sessions are designed to harness the power of insurance to enhance water resilience and attract much-needed investment in urban water infrastructure”.
According to her, the workshops will focus on strengthening Lagos’ capacity to understand and prioritize water risks, address data gaps, and overcome barriers to investment in water infrastructure. Attendees will engage in interactive sessions and discussions that explore how insurance tools can support urban resilience and attract private-sector financing. The event will also showcase case studies and insights from global experts on insurance and investment.
She stated that key discussions include innovative insurance solutions like parametric insurance, prioritizing Lagos’ most critical water challenges, identifying strategies to close data gaps, and addressing obstacles to financing water infrastructure projects. Through these sessions, participants will collaboratively develop actionable solutions and foster connections among public and private sector stakeholders.
“Given its strategic waterfront location, Lagos State must invest in developing robust water management capabilities”, Dania added.
In her contribution, Elizabeth Barrett, Lead Fellow, Lagos and General Counsel UK & Ireland at Howden, remarked that insurance is key to advancing urban resilience in the face of climate change, transforming uncertainty into preparedness. These workshops will show the transformative role insurance can play in managing water risks and unlocking the investments needed to address Lagos’ most pressing challenges.
The event will feature presentations, panel discussions, and breakout sessions led by experts from organizations such as the Resilient Water Accelerator, Arup, Financial Sector Deepening Africa, First Bank of Nigeria and Boston Consulting Group.
The GRRF is a unique fellowship programme that connects insurance professionals with city leaders who have a deep understanding of urban resilience challenges and insurance professionals who have specific risk expertise to develop tangible resilience solutions. Five cities, Lagos, Cape Town, Norfolk, Greater Manchester, and Oakland participated in the most recent Fellowship cohort.