Stakeholder Engagement

December 2016

Conference of Consulting Actuaries Annual Meeting—U.S.
IAA President-elect Tom Terry spoke at a session at the Annual Meeting of the Conference of Consulting Actuaries in Las Vegas, Nevada, in October. The session was organized and facilitated by Actuaries Without Borders Section Chair Doug Carey and was devoted to international practice for actuaries based in America. Tom spoke about the IAA and its strategic objectives, including its initiatives in encouraging the development of practice standards around the world, and the role and purpose of the IAA’s model standards.

International Financial Reporting Standards Advisory Council (IFRS AC)—UK
Micheline Dionne, the IAA Relationship Manager to, and a member of, the IFRS AC, attended a meeting of the AC in October.

Current International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) activities include finalizing the insurance contracts and conceptual framework projects, and working on the primary financial statement and insurance contracts standard implementation support project. Participants also discussed key performance indicators for the IFRS Foundation. Amendments to IFRS 4 to address IFRS 9 issues were issued in September.

Some members of the IAA Pensions and Employee Benefits Committee will liaise with IASB staff to assist in the progression of the pensions hybrid plans.

The Actuaries’ Club of Hartford and Springfield—U.S.
On November 10, Tom Terry spoke at the annual meeting of the Actuaries’ Club of Hartford and Springfield. His talk, delivered in Hartford, Connecticut, focused on the growth of the actuarial profession globally, and similarities and differences in the practice needs of actuaries around the world. He spoke of the challenges and opportunities facing the profession, and the IAA’s efforts to address them.

International Labour Organization’s Impact Insurance Forum and 12th International Microinsurance Conference—Sri Lanka
During November, members of the Microinsurance Working Group (MiWG) attended the 12th International Microinsurance Conference and the Impact Insurance Forum. Attendance included participation in a joint panel discussion with the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) on actuarial capacity in microinsurance and the implications for regulation. The discussion challenged the audience on when and at what level actuarial expertise is required when performing microinsurance work, which resulted in healthy debate about the practical implications of the lack of actuarial capacity in most microinsurance markets. Feedback received during the discussion supported the work being done by the working group with the IAIS on actuarial services in inclusive insurance markets.

20th Asian Actuarial Conference (AAC)—Gurgaon, India
From 9 to 12 November, over 716 actuaries from a wide range of Asian (and other) countries participated in an interesting program, based on this year’s AAC theme ”Changing Asian Societies: Challenges and Opportunities”. IAA President Malcolm Campbell was in attendance and as well as a talk on the future of the profession, he was a panel member in two plenary sessions, one on "regulatory changes in evolving economies and technologies", and another entitled ”expanding professional and blurring of boundaries”. 

The conference ended with the customary gala dinner including performances from many of the participants. All now look forward to next years’ event in Beijing.

4th African Actuarial Congress—South Africa
The Actuarial Society of South Africa (ASSA), with the support of the Africa Subcommittee of the IAA Advice and Assistance (A&A) Committee, organized the 4th African Actuarial Congress in Cape Town in November, immediately following the IAA Council and Committee meetings. The event was attended by more than 160 participants representing 12 African countries and other areas.

The seminar featured an enriching agenda—which included elements concerning wider fields such as data analytics and large-scale infrastructure projects—that allowed participants to have lively discussions and to network. Sundeep Raichura, the subcommittee’s chairperson, closed the event by indicating that information shared during the seminar would help the subcommittee leadership develop a three-year work plan with the objective of building a legacy for the continent’s many aspiring actuaries.

Annual Conference—Caribbean Actuarial Association
This year’s Caribbean Actuarial Association (CAA) annual conference in Suriname, taking place during the CAA’s 25th anniversary year, was attended by Executive Committee member Mike McLaughlin. He spoke to a plenary session about the IAA, its structure and strategic objectives, and its role in helping its 69 member associations. Mike indicated ways in which the CAA could benefit from its international membership, including knowledge resources, committee participation, model standards and supranational relationships.

The conference covered a wide variety of topics, including risk management and big data. Mike spoke on the social impact of actuarial work and the need for greater involvement by the profession and individual members. He also joined the Presidents’ Forum on behalf of the IAA, along with the presidents or representatives of the Society of Actuaries (SOA), Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS), Canadian Institute of Actuaries (CIA), Institute of Actuaries of Australia, Het Koninklijk Actuarieel Genootschap (Netherlands) and CAA.

During the gala dinner Mike presented the CAA with a plaque from the IAA, congratulating the association on its anniversary. The photo shows CAA President Marcus Bosland accepting it. Mike also said that the CAA was a model member of the IAA, participating actively and contributing to a wide range of international activities.

Next year’s conference will be held in the Bahamas from November 30.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)—France
In December Esko Kivisaari, IAA relationship manager to the OECD and delegate to the International Organisation of Pension Supervisors, along with Christelle Dieudonné, Chairperson of the Health Committee from January 2017, and IAA PEBC member Thierry Poincelin, attended meetings of the OECD Insurance and Private Pensions Committee and its Working Party on Private Pensions in Paris. The OECD secretariat representatives were Pablo Antolin, Jessica Mosher and Mamiko Yokoi-Arai.

The OECD expressed its continued interest in receiving help from the actuarial profession on specific projects. These meetings were an opportunity for us to develop our relationship with the OECD and identify projects where our knowledge would be useful to it. A specific project will focus on cyber risks. We need an IAA expert in this area, and if you are interested in being involved please contact Carla Melvin, IAA Supranational Relations Manager.

The next OECD meetings will take place in June, and IAA representatives will be attending. 

International Association of Insurance Supervisors—UK
Representatives from the IAIS and the IAA MiWG met in London at the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA) office to discuss the progress of their joint project to develop papers on actuarial services in financial inclusion.

Participants agreed that the timeline remained ambitious, but the IAA paper is on track and a draft of it could be shared with a review group in January. The progress of the IAIS paper would be reviewed shortly; a group has been established to produce it and a chair has been appointed.

The MiWG’s work received a good reception at the above-mentioned Sri Lanka and Cape Town meetings, with strong interest among IAA members. An updated presentation may be made to the IAA meeting in Budapest in April.

Table of Contents