Life insurance in Africa remains extraordinarily concentrated, with South Africa writing $43,786m in life gross written premiums in 2025, commanding 81% of the 23 markets ranked and almost 14 times the next largest, according to the African Insurance Organisation in its Annual Report 2026.
Only two other markets clear $1bn, namely Morocco ($3,148m) and Kenya ($1,820m).
Below them, the ranking flattens abruptly. Namibia ($785m) and Egypt ($754m) form a small third tier, followed by Nigeria ($479m) and Ivory Coast ($440m).
The remaining 16 of the 23 markets reported annual premiums that fell between $51m and $400m, a band that contains economies of very different sizes: Tunisia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Uganda, Mauritius, Senegal, Algeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Tanzania, Burkina Faso, Togo, Benin, Gabon, Mozambique and Angola.
Two structural features explain the shape of the distribution. First, the markets at the top are those with deep mandatory or quasi-mandatory retirement savings schemes: South Africa and Namibia both rank far above their economic weight for this reason, and in both, the life book is larger than the non-life book. Second, across most of the continent, life cover is still a protection product sold to a small salaried minority rather than a savings vehicle for the wider population.
Where that pattern holds, life premium volumes stay small regardless of how fast GDP grows. These structures also shape how the market is moving. GCR Ratings projects real growth above 1% for South African life business, where penetration of around 9% already stands far above regional and global averages and affordability pressures weigh on demand.
The smaller markets are expanding several times faster from far lower bases, with real life growth projected above 5% in Kenya and above 10% in Tanzania. In Uganda, life penetration roughly doubled between 2020 and 2024, from about 0.2% to 0.4% of GDP, driven by demand for group life, savings-linked and retirement products as formal employment expanded. In Zimbabwe, short-term funeral products generated 72% of life gross premiums in 2023.
The report added that rising minimum capital requirements across several markets should drive consolidation without materially changing the ranking.