On 17 June 2026, Prof. Martin Lengwiler from the University of Basel delivered the final guest lecture of the current summer semester as part of the CRC 1342 Jour Fixe series. The Swiss historian presented results of his research on the diffusion of commercial insurance in East and West Africa. He was invited by Prof. Delia González de Reufels, Project Director of Project B15 and Dean of Faculty 08: Social Sciences at the University of Bremen.
Abstract:
This paper presents the results of a historical research project examining the diffusion of commercial insurance in non-Western countries. It focuses on sub-Saharan Africa, particularly East and West African countries, from the late colonial period to the early decades of independence (1940s–1980s). During the colonial era, insurance was primarily available to Western communities and local elites. After independence, the development of insurance markets depended on political and socio-economic conditions. In socialist countries such as Tanzania and Ghana, the insurance industry was nationalised and campaigns were launched for its 'Africanisation', but these countries still depended on Western expertise and reinsurance. In Western-oriented countries such as Kenya and Nigeria, markets were driven by competition between African and European companies. The growth of commercial insurance markets, especially life insurance, was also limited by the social welfare programmes of independent African governments. This paper discusses the factors that have shaped the development of African insurance markets and highlights the role of regional and international organisations (e.g. UNCTAD).
Martin Lengwiler is Full Professor of Modern European History at the University of Basel. He received his Habilitation degree at the University of Zurich in 2004 and has since held several visiting and substitute professorships, including at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (2009) and at the University of Basel (2006-2009). He was a Fellow at the Historical Research Institute, University of California, Irvine in 2001. He is also an associate member of the Science Policy Project Group at the Social Science Research Center Berlin (WZB). In 2009, he was appointed to an assistant professorship with tenure track (Modern European History) at the University of Basel. In 2012, the position was converted into a full professorship.
Contact:
Prof. Dr. Delia González de Reufels
CRC 1342: Global Dynamics of Social Policy, Institut für Geschichtswissenschaft / FB 08
Universitäts-Boulevard 13
28359 Bremen
Phone: +49 421 218-67200
E-Mail: dgr@uni-bremen.de
