CRMI calls for risk management reforms across sectors

The Chartered Risk Management Institute of Nigeria has called for mandatory risk management reporting by organisations registered in Nigeria and the establishment of dedicated risk management functions across ministries, departments and agencies to strengthen institutional resilience and promote sustainable national development.

Speaking at the institute’s 25th anniversary and annual international conference in Lagos recently, CRMI President, Mr Kevin Ugwuoke, said risks were interconnected and that a failure in one area could affect an entire organisation.

Speaking on the theme, ‘The Resilience Edge’, he said identifying risks and establishing controls were no longer sufficient.

“Resilience is the ability to make sound decisions under pressure, to keep essential activities working, to adapt as circumstances change, and to recover, while continuing to create value. That is the edge,” he stated.

Ugwuoke said the institute envisioned a Nigeria where risk management extended beyond banks to businesses, government institutions and other sectors of the economy.

“Our vision is a Nigeria in which risk management is not the preserve of banks, but part of the daily life of the nation: in every boardroom and every small business; in every ministry, department and agency; in agriculture and energy, health and education, manufacturing and technology; wherever public trust is held.

“That is why we are advocating. We are pressing for organisations registered in Nigeria to report on how they manage risk, and for a risk management function in every ministry, department and agency. A more professional approach to risk, across all sectors, is the foundation of national resilience.

“But advocacy alone will not carry us. The Institute is a bridge between the private sector, the public sector and academia, and a bridge needs people at both ends. So I call on every one of you, regulators, executives, entrepreneurs, public servants, academics and students: connect with this Institute,” he said.

Ugwuoke described the institute’s chartered status, conferred by Act No. 39 of 2022, as its most important milestone, adding that it came with a responsibility to maintain professional competence and public trust.

“We have made our contributions along the way. CRMI contributed to the national conversation on credit bureaus from as early as 2002, leading up to the CBN’s introduction of credit bureaus in Nigeria. With the CIBN, we launched the Chartered Risk Manager certification, now in its tenth set,” he said.

He also announced the commencement of the Executive Risk Management Certification in collaboration with Lagos Business School.

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The Director of Risk Management at the Central Bank of Nigeria, Dr Blaise Ijebor, urged risk professionals to review fiscal and monetary policies after their implementation to ensure compliance.

“Then you need to look at operational and compliance. And the risk duty, therefore, is to monitor the implementation and see how that affects your cash flow timing,” he said.

The keynote speaker and Chairman of the Board of PENCOM, Mr. Opeyemi Agbaje, said the institute’s 25-year journey reflected vision, perseverance, professional commitment and efforts to establish risk management as a pillar of sound organisational governance and sustainable development.

He said the conference theme, ‘The Resilience Edge’, addressed the prevailing challenges and responsibilities facing risk management professionals.

Agbaje explained that resilience involved anticipating change, absorbing disruptions, adapting effectively, recovering responsibly and turning challenges into opportunities for sustainable growth.

“It goes beyond the traditional understanding of risk management as a function concerned primarily with identifying threats and preventing losses. It positions risk management as a strategic instrument for protecting value, creating opportunities, enabling innovation, and strengthening decision-making,” he said.

He noted that economic volatility, geopolitical tensions, technological disruption, cyber threats, climate-related challenges, regulatory changes, health pandemics and changing stakeholder expectations continued to test organisations across sectors.

“In such an environment, the question is no longer whether organisations will encounter risks. The more important question is whether they possess the foresight, capabilities, and leadership required to withstand disruptions, adapt to changing circumstances, and emerge stronger,” he said.

The First Vice-President of CRMI, Mrs Eneni Oduwole, said the institute would continue to contribute to national development through risk governance and strategy. She said its focus was on building resilience rather than relying solely on risk registers and compliance checklists.

“For us, our focus has been, like our theme says, resilience, building the resilience edge. So it’s not about having risk registers. It’s not about managing compliance from a checklist point of view or managing risk from compliance. But it’s about being very proactive, being very broad-based in one’s outlook to risk management,” she said.