While the gender gap in the insurance industry has over time narrowed to 51.78% male and 48.22% female at the end of 2022, the gap remains wide, especially at the top and middle-level management.
Ritah Mutesi Kabayiza, the Executive Director of Willis Towers Watson Uganda (WTW), one of Uganda’s top 5 insurance brokers, is one of the few women who have broken the industry glass ceiling.
With over 16 years in the insurance business, she started her insurance brokerage career at Eagle Africa Insurance Services (U) before moving to Gras Savoye Uganda Insurance Brokers Ltd as a Senior Client Manager.
Gras Savoye- a subsidiary of the then-French insurance broker, entered the Ugandan insurance market at the tail end of 2012.
In early 2016, when Ronald Musoke, the founding General Manager of Gras Savoye in Uganda went on to become the Chief Executive Officer of the Uganda Reinsurance Company, Ritah Mutesi Kabayiza was appointed the head of Gras Savoye in Uganda in a caretaker role.
In April 2015 the London-based Willis Group Holdings plc, a multinational risk advisory insurance brokerage and reinsurance brokerage firm announced a firm offer to acquire the remaining 70 per cent of Gras Savoye that it did not own. The transaction was completed on December 29, 2015, following acceptance of the offer by Gras Savoye shareholders in late June 2015.
Willis first acquired a 33% stake in Gras Savoye in 1995.
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In 2017, Gras Savoye Uganda became Willis Towers Watson Uganda and in April 2017, Ritah Mutesi Kabayiza, became its substantive Executive Director.
The rebranding process from Gras Savoye to Willis Watson Towers was however completed in April 2018.
In the time she has been at the helm of Willis Towers Watson Uganda, premiums placed by the broker have grown from UGX10.7 billion which she inherited at the end of 2016 to UGX 55.4 billion at the end of 2022, a growth of 398.1%.
Commissions earned have more than doubled, growing at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.1%, from UGX 2.6 billion in 2016 to UGX 5.8 billion at the end of 2022.
She graduated from Makerere University with a Bachelor of Office and Information Management. A member of the Chartered Insurance Institute (UK), Kabayiza also holds certification from the National Insurance Academy of India. She has also completed the Strathmore Business School (SBS) Senior Management Leadership Program and Executive Coaching Course under the International Coaching Federation (ICF).
Passionate about leadership and people development she has over time become a thought leader in the insurance industry. She is also the Vice Chairperson of the Insurance Brokers Association of Uganda (IBAU)- a professional umbrella body for all licensed insurance broking companies in Uganda.