Nigeria’s huge health-insurance gap is beginning to look less like a social-policy problem and more like an investment opportunity, as tighter regulation, fresh capital and technology create conditions for consolidation in one of Africa’s least-developed financial markets.
The signal is coming from Senegal.
French health-insurance start-up Alan’s acquisition of Senegalese insurer Tanel gives the €5.5 billion company its first foothold in West Africa and offers a potential template for the region: build a local customer base and technology platform, then scale through acquisitions.
For Nigeria, the significance is larger because the country has a far bigger addressable market but remains severely underinsured.
Only about 10 percent of Nigerians have health insurance, according to the National Health Insurance Authority, leaving roughly 90 percent exposed to healthcare costs. BusinessDay reported that enrolment reached about 21.1 million in the third quarter of 2025.
