The Insurance Regulatory Authority of Uganda (IRA) has officially launched Insurance Week 2026 alongside the Insurance Innovation Awards 2025.
This time focusing on the nationwide campaign aimed at deepening insurance inclusion, strengthening public trust and accelerating sector growth.
Now in its fifth year, Insurance Week has evolved from a public awareness drive into a broad industry movement designed to take insurance services closer to the people. The 2026 edition will run from March 19 to 26 at Constitution Square in Kampala, commonly known as City Square, with parallel activities in Mbale, Gulu and Mbarara.
Speaking at the launch on Tuesday, IRA Chief Executive Officer Alhaj Kaddunabbi Lubega said the initiative is rooted in the Authority’s statutory mandate to promote public education and awareness about insurance.
“The Annual Insurance Week provides us with a platform as an industry to engage directly with the public, deepen their understanding and appreciation of insurance, and showcase products and innovations that address consumer needs and complaints,” Kaddunabbi said.
This year’s theme, “Future = Sure in Insurance,” highlights the link between protection, planning and long-term financial stability.
According to Kaddunabbi, the objective is not only to raise awareness but to make insurance accessible, relatable and responsive to everyday realities.
A key highlight of the 2026 edition will be a dedicated complaints desk where members of the public can lodge complaints, seek clarification and follow up on unresolved claims directly with IRA officials and industry players.
“This helps us to foster meaningful dialogue between providers and consumers, while enhancing transparency and accountability within the sector,” he noted.
In a departure from previous editions, the 2026 Insurance Week has been extended to cover a full week, including the weekend, to allow more Ugandans time to visit exhibition booths and interact with insurers, brokers, bancassurance agents, loss assessors and adjusters.
“We want insurance to remain accessible, trusted and relevant to all Ugandans. Extending the event allows the public to engage meaningfully with licensed players and other financial stakeholders,” Kaddunabbi added.
From Awareness to Engagement
Sande Protazio, Director Strategy and Market Development at IRA, said the concept of Insurance Week was born out of a deliberate strategy to move insurance conversations beyond boardrooms and industry conferences.
“We are here not just to launch an event, but to continue a movement that started five years ago and has since registered significant achievements for the IRA and the insurance industry,” Sande said.
He explained that while Insurance Week will take place in 2026, the Innovation Awards are being held for 2025 because they recognise products and solutions that have already been tested in the market.
“We cannot award what we have not yet witnessed. That is why the awards are for 2025, but the Insurance Week is for 2026,” he clarified.
According to Sande, awareness alone is insufficient to drive uptake.
“You may hear the CEO on radio or read about insurance in newspapers—that is awareness. But we wanted to move beyond awareness to engagement. We wanted to listen to the last person in the village so that our regulations and policies respond to real needs,” he said.
He emphasized that visibility of the regulator plays a central role in building trust.
“Regulation without visibility cannot build trust. Products without understanding cannot build uptake. And growth without inclusion cannot build resilience,” Sande stressed.
He cited growing public confidence as evidence that the strategy is working, recalling a recent encounter with a man in his 50s who sought advice on investing proceeds from the sale of land into an insurance fund to secure regular income for his children’s education.
“That conversation showed me that the message is reaching people far beyond Kampala. Individuals are beginning to see insurance not as an expense, but as a financial planning tool,” he said.
Innovation at the Centre
The Insurance Innovation Awards 2025 will culminate the week’s activities, recognising outstanding achievements in product development, operational efficiency and technology-driven solutions.
Jonan Kisaakye, Chief Executive Officer of the Uganda Insurers Association (UIA), said innovation must be understood broadly.
“One of the biggest misconceptions is that innovation is only about technology. Innovation goes beyond technology. It speaks to our processes, our products and how we automate and serve customers,” Kisaakye said.
He explained that the awards are designed to spotlight insurers that are transforming service delivery and responding to emerging consumer needs.
“These awards directly speak to the processes and products that resonate with innovation. They highlight the progress we are making as an industry,” he added.
Kisaakye also welcomed this year’s theme, saying it reinforces the connection between insurance and trust.
“That theme connects insurers with the masses. It brings the aspect of trust and financial security closer to ordinary Ugandans,” he noted.
He revealed that UIA will use Insurance Week to intensify public education on the recently introduced digital motor insurance stickers, which replaced the traditional Moto 30 physical stickers.
“Together with the Insurance Regulatory Authority of Uganda, we launched digital stickers to replace physical Moto 30 stickers. During Insurance Week, our focus will be on promoting their uptake and educating the public on how they work,” he said.
UIA teams, he added, will be on-site throughout the week to address concerns related to digital stickers and other insurance matters.
Industry-Wide Collaboration
Insurance Week 2026 has attracted support from key stakeholders including the Bank of Uganda, the Uganda Revenue Authority and the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA), which will provide on-site services such as national ID registration and tax education.
Industry associations and training institutions are also rallying behind the initiative to ensure broad participation and sustained impact.
Beyond exhibitions and awards, the week will feature free insurance consultations, financial literacy sessions, a blood donation drive and complimentary eye and general health check-ups.
“Blood has no substitute, and knowing your health status is key to living longer and planning better,” Kaddunabbi emphasized, urging Ugandans to turn up in large numbers.
As the sector seeks to address historically low insurance penetration levels, leaders believe sustained public engagement is beginning to yield results.
“We want to engage the public, empower consumers with knowledge, evolve our regulatory and product frameworks, and elevate the insurance sector to play its rightful role in Uganda’s socio-economic transformation,” Sande described.
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