The Chairperson of the Ga Presbytery has charged local Ghanaian companies, particularly Premier Health Insurance, to leave a legacy of becoming a global company soon.
At the inaugural service and launch of the 10th Anniversary celebrations of Premier Health Insurance, Rev. Dr Abraham Nana Opare Kwakye wondered why many companies across the globe, some of which were set up in the 1890s, are still in existence and operating in a dozen countries but no such example exists in Ghana.
“I hope Premier Health Insurance will be different and will become a global company. The vision [of the company] must be bigger than this,” he said, adding, “Premier must be legacy minded and not just exist for today.”
Like Apostle Paul who served God with the same passion and zeal with which he persecuted Christians, Rev. Dr Kwakye said the management and workers of Premier Health must work with the same passion and zeal in the coming decades as they have done in the past.
He said there are bound to be challenges in the coming years but the workers must “press on” even in the face of opposition and know that in times of difficulties, there also exist layers of increase.
He charged the management of the company to “seek perfection, be disciplined and show good leadership and excellence at all times,” traits he said could easily transform Premier Health Insurance into a global company in the shortest possible time.
The inaugural service, which was held at the premises of the company, was attended by captains and Chief Executives Officers (CEOs) of companies, workers and clients of Premier as well as the Development Queen mother of Afigya Kwabre District of the Ashanti Region, Nana Adwoa Awindor, who was also the host of the famous Greetings from Abroad programme.
10 years of Premier
Sharing the story and experiences of Premier Health Insurance, the CEO, Percy Asare Ansah said he was identified in March 2011 by Harold Awuah Darko who set him up with a seed capital of $50,000.00 equivalent in Ghana cedis.
He said from a storeroom, for an office, staff strength of three, a laptop and a Hyundai i10 vehicle with no client in April 2011, Premier Health Insurance has grown to become the biggest health insurance company with 84,168 lives, almost 30% of the market share of 260,000 lives in 10 years.
“We have seven branches across the country, something none of our competitors has been able to achieve, 52 permanent workers, 42 sales agents across the country with a dozen awards including Best Insurance Company in 2017, CEO of the year, Best Individual Healthcare award etc from credible and reputable institutions,” he chronicled.
Game changer
Banking on the commitment, loyalty and dedication of his team, which he said was crucial in the Premier Health story, the Teachers and Workers plan, he noted, was the game-changer in the industry.
“When we started all our competitors targeted big companies with their products, but we decided to be different and we introduced novel products which looked at the lower end of the market,” he explained, adding our Apomuden product which also targeted Ghanaians abroad who have relatives in Ghana was also a masterstroke in the industry.
Two members of the staff, Justice Ayim Asare and Maxwell Boadu, who started the business with Mr Ansah and have remained loyal after 10 years, were duly acknowledged.
The CEO also commended the Board, workers and clients of the company for their support, thus far saying: “Premier is still in the nursery stage. We will build on it.”
Anniversary activities
As part of activities lined up to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the company, Mr Ansah said there will be a Health Talk which shall engage all stakeholders in the industry later in the year, a donation to charity, a Customer and Breast Cancer Awareness Week as well as an Awards Night.