By Elijah Khisa
GoldStar Insurance Company Ltd paid out Shs15 billion in insurance claims out of Shs53 billion worth of business written by the company by the end of 2025, its Chief Executive Officer, John Kawuma, has disclosed.
Kawuma said the claims payments were a significant contribution to the growth of Uganda’s insurance industry.
He made the remarks on September 18, 2026, during celebrations to mark 30 years of GoldStar Insurance Company’s contribution to the insurance industry. The event was held at Kabira Country Club in Kampala and brought together key stakeholders across the insurance value chain.
Kawuma congratulated the company’s customers and other stakeholders for supporting GoldStar throughout its 30-year journey, saying their continued trust had enabled the company to maintain its commitment to quality service delivery.
He said the company had been positioned among the top five insurance companies in Uganda.
Kawuma said GoldStar’s new commitment was to invest significant resources in digital insurance, enterprise management, artificial intelligence (AI) platforms, human resource development and strengthening its cybersecurity systems to meet the changing needs of its customers.
He urged farmers in rural areas experiencing heavy losses due to drought to visit GoldStar Insurance’s headquarters at Crane Chambers in Kampala and take advantage of affordable agricultural insurance policies designed to cushion them against such losses.
He also encouraged farmers to embrace modern agricultural technologies to reduce production costs and minimise risks.
Kawuma urged city traders who lose millions of shillings in arcade fires and other disasters to take up business insurance policies that protect their shops and merchandise against such risks.
He said GoldStar had also partnered with Victoria University to encourage students to pursue professional courses related to the insurance sector. He noted that several students had secured employment opportunities with GoldStar through the partnership.
Victoria University Vice Chancellor Prof. Lawrence Muganga confirmed that the strategic partnership with GoldStar had strengthened students’ interest in insurance-related professions.
Muganga said the university, which is scheduled to hold its graduation ceremonies on October 18 and 19, 2026, was strengthening its collaboration with GoldStar to promote inclusive insurance policies that would empower more Ugandans to embrace the sector.
The Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Insurance Regulatory Authority of Uganda, Sande Protazio, represented by the Director of Supervision, Bernard Obel, congratulated GoldStar on reaching the 30-year milestone.
Obel said the achievement was the result of sustained efforts to provide quality, effective and efficient insurance services to the public.
He noted that despite the low uptake of insurance cover across Uganda, companies such as GoldStar were steadily building strong customer bases and reputations, with a positive impact on their clients.
Obel said insurance was a complex industry that required players to build strong pillars of trust, integrity, honesty, respect for the regulator and effective service delivery as part of their core operational values.
He attributed some of the challenges facing the sector to misconceptions and myths about insurance and urged industry players to conduct comprehensive public sensitisation campaigns on the benefits of insurance.
He said the regulator would continue engaging stakeholders, including educational institutions, employees and employers, government and private-sector players, through continuous capacity-building programmes aimed at increasing understanding and uptake of insurance products.
GoldStar Insurance Board Vice Chairperson Dr Sudhir Ruparelia said the company’s founders had 30 years ago envisioned contributing to the development and growth of Uganda’s insurance sector.
He said the anniversary celebrations were an opportunity to reflect on the achievements made towards fulfilling that vision.
Ruparelia pledged the board’s commitment to investing more resources in the sector, including introducing digital and AI-powered insurance tools to attract young people seeking faster and more convenient digital insurance services.
He thanked President Yoweri Museveni and the Government for creating what he described as an enabling environment that had allowed the company to take its services closer to the community.
Ruparelia said the Ruparelia Group of Companies, which owns GoldStar Insurance, remained committed to supporting sustainable business growth by creating jobs and extending services to the public.
