The South African Insurance Association (SAIA) recently announced the appointment of Ms Lizé Lambrechts as the new Chairperson of the SAIA Board. Ms Lambrechts, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Santam Limited, has been a member of the SAIA Board of Directors since January 2015. She took up her new position as Chairperson on 26 October 2015.
Ms Lambrechts became the CEO of Santam Limited on 1 January 2015, after serving as Chief Executive of Sanlam Personal Finance for twelve years.
Ms Lambrechts says that she is honoured to take up this important position and that she is looking forward to steering SAIA through these exciting times. “SAIA operates in the larger socioeconomic environment and therefore needs to adapt to the bigger changes that the financial services industry and the country as a whole face. I am looking forward to making a meaningful contribution in this regard.”
The SAIA Board also announced the appointment of Mr Garikai Dhombo, Managing Director of Alexander Forbes Insurance Company Limited, as the Deputy Chairperson. Mr Dhombo has been a member of the SAIA Board since July 2010.
“I feel privileged to be part of a process that assists in creating a common vision for the short-term insurance industry, an association that encourages fair and ethical treatment of consumers and one that creates a sustainable business environment that members can operate in,” says Mr Dhombo.
Acting CEO of the SAIA, Ms Viviene Pearson, welcomes the appointments of Ms Lambrechts and Mr Dhombo and says that she has no doubt that they will strengthen the association going forward. “After SAIA adopted a new business model based on the industry’s changing needs and expectations, we believe that Ms Lambrechts and Mr Dhombo are well placed to lead SAIA through this exciting era of change,” Pearson added.
Pearson said that Ms Lambrechts was the Chair of the Life Offices Association (LOA) in 2006 and 2007, and actively involved in the Association for Savings and Investment SA (ASISA) since its establishment and therefore brings a lot of experience in this regard to SAIA. Mr Dhombo has been actively involved in SAIA at Board level for many years, and has acted as the Chair of the SAIA Board Committee: Insurance Risks during the last eighteen months, she added.
“We welcome Ms Lambrechts and Mr Dhombo on board and wish them a successful journey ahead,” Pearson concluded.