CIMA Code

Definition

The CIMA Code is the single insurance code of the fourteen member states of the Conférence Interafricaine des Marchés d'Assurances, established by the Yaoundé Treaty of 10 July 1992: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo. In force since 1995, it governs insurance contracts, insurers and their supervision by the regional control commission (CRCA), and, in Book V, agents, brokers and other intermediaries. Its Article 13, amended by Regulation 0001/CIMA/PCMA/PCE/2011 of 11 April 2011, makes the policy effective only once the premium is paid and prohibits renewing a policy whose premium is outstanding: a strict cash-before-cover regime.

What you need to know

English-speaking brokers encounter the CIMA Code when they serve clients or partners in francophone West and Central Africa, or when a pan-African group standardises processes across both zones. The main difference from South African, Kenyan or Nigerian practice lies in premium collection.

In common-law markets, an unpaid premium typically triggers a grace period and then a lapse, with reinstatement procedures; in CIMA states there is no cover until the premium has been received, and a policy unpaid at renewal terminates automatically. The broker's premium reminder is therefore not a retention exercise but a condition of cover. Brokers in Abidjan, Dakar or Douala send reminders on WhatsApp ten to fifteen days before the due date, list the local payment options (Orange Money, Wave, MTN MoMo, bank transfer, cash at the branch) and send the certificate of insurance as a PDF in the same thread once payment is confirmed.

Book V of the Code sets out intermediary licensing: brokers are approved by the minister in charge of insurance in each state, must hold a financial guarantee and keep registers. Detailed rules vary by country and are summarised on the country pages. The follow-ups and renewals hub covers reminder sequences, and the policy lapse entry explains the contrasting grace-period regimes of anglophone markets.

Concrete example

A Lagos-based group acquires a brokerage in Cotonou and tries to apply its Nigerian renewal process, which allows clients to pay after the renewal date. Within a month, several motor clients are driving uninsured because their Beninese policies terminated on the due date. The group rewrites the WhatsApp reminder sequence for the CIMA subsidiary so that payment confirmation precedes the renewal date.