Corporate Governance Mechanisms and Strategic Risk Management in Nigerian Listed Insurance Companies

This study empirically examines how corporate governance mechanisms influence strategic risk management quality in insurance companies listed on the Nigerian Exchange Group. The insurance industry faces unique strategic risks including catastrophe risk, investment portfolio risk, and regulatory compliance risk, making governance-strategy linkages particularly consequential. Agency theory and stewardship theory provide the theoretical framework. The study adopts a quantitative design, analyzing governance and risk management disclosures from twelve listed insurance companies over five years. Board audit committee effectiveness scores, governance quality indices, and risk management framework comprehensiveness indicators were constructed from disclosure data. Strategic risk management quality was operationalized through solvency margin stability and risk-adjusted return ratios. Panel regression analysis was applied. Findings indicate that audit committee financial expertise and board risk committee independence are the governance mechanisms with the strongest positive effects on strategic risk management quality. The study finds that companies with integrated governance and risk management frameworks demonstrate lower volatility in solvency ratios over the study period, suggesting more effective strategic risk buffering. Gender-diverse boards show a positive but marginally significant moderation effect on risk management conservatism. The research concludes that Nigerian insurance regulators and company boards must strengthen governance-risk management integration frameworks to improve sector strategic resilience. Keywords: corporate governance, strategic risk management, insurance companies, Nigeria, board effectiveness.