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IAA
Newsletter - March 2005 |
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IAA Official Representation Activities The IAA officers have been busy representing the IAA at official events since the beginning of the year. President Alf Guldberg was present at the Biennial President’s dinner in Ireland as well as at the 7th Global Congress of Actuaries in New Delhi, India (see report in this newsletter). Past President Luis Huerta continues to serve us well. He represented the IAA at the IAA Fund meeting in Panama (see report in this newsletter), then at the meeting of the North American Actuarial Council (NAAC) in Oaxaca, Mexico and at a meeting of Latin American Supervisors (ASSAL) in Bolivia. He will also represent us at a World Bank Conference next month. Secretary General Yves Guérard represented the IAA at the 9th Regional Pension and Social Insurance Conference in Beirut (see report in this newsletter).
Read this article to find out what you might have missed. Update on the Work of IAA Committees
Update on the Work of IAA Sections Find out what is happening within the IAA sections and how you can contribute to their work.
Read this article to find out what events are being planned. Have you got yours yet? A Global Framework for Insurer Solvency Assessment: A Research Report by the IAA’s Insurer Solvency Assessment Working Party – Less than 100 copies left - Order Your Copy Today – CLICK HERE Encyclopedia of Actuarial Science Wiley UK has recently published an Encyclopedia of Actuarial Science. A website has been created (http://www.wiley.com/legacy/wileychi/eoas/) where you can obtain all the details of the Encyclopedia and information on how to order your own personal copy. This site has links to Wiley in the US, Canada, and Europe (UK and Germany). Asia and Australia do not have an online ordering facility at present, but email, phone and fax options exist. Orders from IAA member organizations and their individual members will benefit from a 20% discount. CAS Web Site and the ASTIN Bulletin The CAS Web Site’s “Online Database of Actuarial Abstracts” is a searchable database of actuarial research paper citations. The Catalog contains citations for over 4,000 papers and includes abstracts and links to papers that are available online. Users can download full texts of papers through the Web Site’s publications section. This section includes the Proceedings from 1914-present and all issues of the CAS Forum and Discussion Paper Program that have been published. The complete collection of over 600 articles in the IAA ASTIN Bulletin is online on the CAS Web Site. These papers are available to ASTIN members through a direct linkage from the IAA Web Site at www.IAA-ASTIN.org.
Read about education opportunities. The deadline for paying your 2005 IAA association dues and individual membership section dues was January 31, 2005. If you have not already done so, please send full payment to the IAA Secretariat as soon as possible in order to maintain your status. The completed education questionnaire was also due on January 31, 2005. Please ensure your association has complied with this request. Completed Full Member association confirmation forms for 2004 were due on February 28, 2005. This is an important requirement for maintaining Full Member status in the IAA. Please ensure your association has returned its completed form. The IAA will use the Fast Track Procedure to officially respond to the following requests for comments. Your association has until the specified deadline to object to the use of the fast track procedure. April 10, 2005 - IAIS Consultation Paper Towards a common structure and common standards for the assessment of insurer solvency: Cornerstones for the formulation of regulatory financial requirements April 25, 2005 - IAASB Exposure Draft on Auditing Accounting Estimates and Related Disclosures April 25, 2005 - IAASB Exposure Draft on Materiality in the Identification and Evaluation of Misstatements Update on the Work of IAA Committees
Actuaries Serving the Public Interest The 14th International Meeting of Leaders of the Actuarial Profession and Actuarial Educators took place in Latin America Tuesday, February 15 and Wednesday, February 16, 2005 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Panama at the invitation of the actuaries in Panama, led by Luis Martinez. Meeting invitees included representatives from 13 countries in the region: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, as well as from Canada, South Africa, Switzerland, the United States and the United Kingdom. The meeting was supported administratively by Luis Martinez of Panama and Nicole Séguin of the IAA Secretariat. The IAA Fund hosted a welcome dinner at the Crowne Plaza Hotel on the Tuesday evening. A closing dinner overlooking the Panama Canal was sponsored by Aseguradora Mondial on the Wednesday evening. The final agenda and papers presented at the meeting are available on the IAA Web site under the IAA Fund button by selecting Meetings then Latin America. Reports were received from nine countries reporting on the many developments in the profession and the role of the actuarial association in different countries, and these are also available on the Web site. There was general agreement that such a meeting is important for the region and that a further meeting should, if possible, be organised in 2006 or 2007. At the conclusion of the meeting, several delegates signed a letter proposing the formation of a Centro Actuarial Panamericano (PAC) as a means for formally developing the profession in that region.
Help support the activities of the IAA Fund Subcommittee. The IAA Fund is in constant need of funding in order to meet the demands of developing the profession internationally. The recent meeting in Panama was the Fund’s first event for 2005. Participants were very enthusiastic about the outcome of the meeting and look forward to contributing to the advancement of the profession in Latin America. The 15th event is planned for September 2005 in Bali to aid in the Asia-Pacific Region. Financial contributions from organizations and individuals are being solicited to ensure the success of this planned event. Click here to make your contribution today for 2005.
The Actuarial Society of South Africa (“ASSA”) hosted the latest in a series of IAA meetings on financial risk. The two-day seminar, held at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg on March 8 and 9, comprised 11 plenary sessions and 8 concurrent sessions. Four concurrent sessions focused on the insurance sector and the other four dealt with financial risk in the banking sector. A variety of financial risk experts addressed delegates on a wide range of issues, including macro-economic financial risks in Southern Africa, the use of exchange traded funds to manage financial risks, corporate governance, securitisation, the role of insurance in mitigating risks facing the poor, enterprise risk management, past business crises and, of course, the implementation of Basel II. Presenters included professionals from other disciplines, e.g. economists, accountants and representatives of regulatory authorities. The input from these non-actuarial experts added a valuable further dimension to discussions. Some delegates, however, experienced the risk of high blood pressure during a presentation by a South African financial journalist, who criticised local life offices. But, “all work and no play …” (and actuaries certainly aren’t dull!) Dinner was held at a traditional restaurant, which afforded delegates the opportunity to taste crocodile, giraffe and a variety of antelope. Those less adventurous could partake of “tame” meat, salads and “pap” (a traditional maize meal dish). The final session entailed a panel discussion on the risk management function. After David Kingston had spoken the final word, delegates were treated to a performance by the choir from a Sowetan school that participates in ASSA’s enrichment programme for pupils from previously disadvantaged communities.
Seven Preliminary Practice Guidelines The Subcommittee on Actuarial Standards of the Insurance Accounting Committee has had a very busy last twelve months. In September and November 2004, we issued seven preliminary exposure drafts for Practice Guidelines (available for download from the IAA’s website) that may be used by actuaries working for or with insurance entities in conjunction with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). This effort has been undertaken to provide actuaries and other financial reporting practitioners with an easy to use source of practice and educational guidance. It is hoped they will prove useful as background in the application of IFRS, which will be used by many European and other insurers beginning this year. The Practice Guidelines are not intended to interpret these accounting standards. Rather, we hope that they will prove useful in raising awareness regarding the standards and their implications, so that more comparable and reliable financial results are prepared. In addition, the Practice Guideline entitled Actuarial Practice will provide assistance to actuaries in supporting the development of financial statements by their employers and clients. All seven standards are being issued as class 4 International Actuarial Standards of Practice, referred to as Practice Guidelines. Although they are referred to as “standards,” they will only be required to be followed if the actuary is required (by statute or regulation) to do so, the client of the actuary requests the actuary to comply with them, or the actuary indicates that he/she has followed them. In addition, each local actuarial association has the option of endorsing, adopting, or adapting them to their local circumstances. The two sets of Practice Guidelines issued thus far will be the topic of discussion at a meeting of the subcommittee on April 11 and 12 in London. The source of discussion and debate will be the twenty-five sets of comments on the preliminary exposure drafts received from actuarial associations, accounting associations, and interested individuals, among others. At this meeting, the subcommittee will certainly make changes to the initial exposure drafts distributed. We will recommend to the IAA Council whether a re-exposure is needed depending on the extent and type of changes we make. We hope to distribute one further set of Practice Guidelines regarding the financial reporting of insurers in conjunction with IFRS. We encourage actuaries and others involved in financial reporting to review our progress with these Practice Guidelines. March 23, 2005 Sam Gutterman, Chair, IAA Committee on
Insurance Accounting
Committee Member Terri Vaughan has been nominated to represent the IAA as an observer on the Solvency Subcommittee of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) and David Sandberg as the alternate representative. The committee continues to work on various responses to the IAIS documents.
Life Section In previous updates I have asked for enthusiastic volunteers to come forward to establish a Life Section of the IAA. I am delighted to say that Stuart Wason and Kurt Wolfsdorf have accepted that challenge and are already working on the project. Several actuaries from around the world have indicated their interest in this proposed new section and there will be a preliminary meeting in Rome in the afternoon of Thursday, June 16. Please do come along! Update on the Work of IAA Sections
ASTIN’s next colloquium will be in Zurich, Switzerland, September 5-7, 2005 and will include a joint day with AFIR/ERM. There will not be a separate ASTIN Colloquium in 2006 in order to encourage participation in the International Congress. In June 2007 the ASTIN Colloquium will be held in Orlando, Florida, at Disney World, where ASTIN will celebrate its jubilee 50th Anniversary. Elections. A general election will be held during the General Assembly of the 2005 ASTIN Colloquium in Zurich. One member will be elected to the ASTIN Committee, in the capacity as Editor, to replace a recent vacancy due to retirement. Candidates for election should write to the ASTIN Chairman, David Hartman. Candidates sponsored by their national actuarial association will be given additional consideration.
Sections are quickly becoming a key area of interest to the IAA, and its leadership is actively encouraging their development in order to bring together actuaries from around the world. IAA Sections are grassroots organizations that largely set their own agendas. The IAA Health Section Committee (HSC), which was formed in 2003 to lead the newly formed Health Section (IAAHS), has been very busy planning how best to serve the needs of the international health actuarial community. Our three most important recent activities are: adopting a planning document entitled “Way Forward Proposal” (this important document can be viewed in the Health Section portion of the IAA web site at www.iaa-iaahs.org), forming of nine Topic Teams, and organizing a health track for the Paris International Congress of Actuaries in May-June 2006. In late November the HSC formed nine Topic Teams designed to bring our HS members together to work on problems and areas of interest to a broad cross-section of our members --- so they are vital to the HS’s success. The new Topic Teams and their Team Leaders are as follows: Product Teams
Process Teams
Policy Teams
The goals for Topic Teams are to create an international community of actuaries and others (membership is not limited to actuaries) who seek to gather, discuss, research, and disseminate information to our members. The “Way Forward Proposal” provides a more in-depth description of Topic Teams and their importance to our future. If you have an interest in joining one of these Topic Teams, please contact the Team Leader. Following on the success of our first two international health colloquia, one in Cancun during ICA2002 and the other in 2004 in Dresden Germany, we are actively planning our third international meeting, which will be held as a part of ICA2006 in Paris. We have formed an Organizing Committee headed by Claude Ferguson to coordinate our efforts with the Paris Organizing Committee and to develop our scientific program. I encourage those of you with interests in health insurance or health care financing who have not already joined the IAA Health Section to go to the IAAHS web site and sign-up by clicking “How to Join”. 2005 dues will be collected through your national actuarial organization.
IACA Report from November 2004 to March 2005 1. As already reported, the biennial general meeting of IACA elected Adrian Waddingham (UK) as Chairman and Mike Toothman (US) as Vice Chairman at Sydney in November 2004. The Secretary/Treasurer is Margaret Sherwood (US). These appointments all followed the biennial IACA Conference in Sydney, so successfully organised by past Chairman Brent Walker. 2. New members were also elected to the IACA Committee, which now numbers 18 people, spread both geographically and by consulting business area, and including two nominees of IAA. 3. IACA’s new constitution was also ratified in Sydney and is being presented at the IAA meeting in Rome for the final endorsement of IAA Council. 4. The new IACA constitution provides for four function committees: Professionalism (Chairman Jay Jaffe, USA), Publications (Chairman Andrew Vaughan, UK), Research (Chairman Ken Buffin, US), Membership (Mike Lombardi, Canada). 5. IACA has recognised that it is sometimes difficult and expensive for members to attend their biennial conferences, and it is now holding “mini” IACA meetings every year and in conjunction with other organisations. There was a mini IACA meeting held at London Gatwick in February 2005 and attached to the Annual Conference of the UK’s Association of Consulting Actuaries. About 60 members attended the half-day programme. 6. There will be two joint meetings later in 2005. The first will be as part of the East Asian Actuarial Conference in Bali, Indonesia, in September 2005, and also as part of the CCA Conference in Ashville, North Carolina in November 2005. In this way IACA is bringing its events closer to the members, and arranging them more frequently. 7. Emmanuel Tassin (France) is already heading an IACA committee making preparations for the IACA programme content at the IAA Congress in Paris in June 2006. 8. At present the paid-up membership of IACA is around 500, although efforts are being taken to more than double this in time for the Paris 2006 congress. 7th Global Conference of Actuaries (GCA)
The Actuarial Society of India (ASI), in conjunction with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and the International Actuarial Association (IAA), held the 7th Global Conference of Actuaries (GCA) from February 15-16, 2005 in New Delhi. The Conference has been held annually since 1999 and is a unique opportunity for the global actuarial community to get together and share experiences and insights for mutual benefit. IAA President, Alf Guldberg, represented the IAA at this annual event. The inaugural session comprised a welcome address by Mr. Onkar S Kanwar, President FICCI, stressing the need for actuaries to enlarge their "canvas of knowledge”; a theme presentation by Mr. Liyaquat Khan, President ASI, highlighting the achievement of ASI towards the globalisation of the actuarial profession and the setting up of the Mortality and Morbidity Investigation Bureau, and a special address by Mr. Alf Guldberg, President of the International Actuarial Association, discussing the ongoing Morris Review in the United Kingdom and referring to meetings with Sir Derek and his team in Washington. Mr. Guldberg stated that 2005 would be an eventful year with the introduction of practice guidelines for International Financial Reporting Standards as well as the implementation of the IAA education guidelines for all Full Member associations. Mr. Jean Berthon, Vice President of the Institut des Actuaires in France, gave a brief description of the actuarial profession in France and made a presentation on the 28th International Congress of Actuaries planned for June 2006 in Paris. The 7th Global Conference of Actuaries provided an excellent opportunity for the Indian actuarial profession to interact with the international actuarial community and to learn about and adopt best global actuarial practices for India. You can find out more about the conference online. 9th Regional Pension and Social Insurance Conference, Beirut The National Social Security Fund and The Muhanna Foundation presented the 9th Regional Pension and Social Insurance Conference in Beirut, Lebanon, 20-22 February 2005. The theme of the conference was "The Government Role and/or Control" and discussion topics included: Pension Reform, Governance, Unemployment, Privatization, Supervision, Investment, Healthcare, IT, Actuarial Valuation, Accounting Standards, Portability, and Private Insurance as a Third Pilar.
Address and presentation by Secretary-General Yves Guérard. IAA Events you won’t want to miss
Paris 2006 Bursaries As part of its Outreach program and to take advantage of the educational opportunities that the Congress offers, the IAA will be making bursaries available to a limited number of persons from developing countries wishing to participate in the Congress, but who will require some form of assistance. Member associations are invited to help identify suitable candidates in order to leverage this important event to increase the outreach of the global actuarial profession and achieve diversity. The Member Services Committee will soon be posting an Application Form on the web site, targeted at younger actuaries and potential leaders of the profession in developing countries, in search of candidates for bursaries to attend the 28th International Congress of Actuaries in 2006. The criteria for the award of bursaries together with an application form will be announced and posted to the Web site shortly. Please note that bursaries are reserved for residents of developing countries (GNP per capita of less than US$5,000 per annum) and preference will be given to persons actively participating in the Congress as presenter or author of a paper and also to those who are actively contributing to the development of the profession in their home country. During the meetings in Washington, the ASTIN Committee offered a contribution of C$25,000 to the IAA Bursary Fund and challenged other sections and associations by offering to match their contributions up to a further C$15,000. More money is needed in order that as many people as possible can benefit from the Congress. Please encourage your association, your section or any other funding body of which you are aware to donate generously! If you would like more details please contact Peter Clark or Nicole Séguin. Other Events APRIL 11-15: World Bank 3rd Contractual Savings Conference: Once again, the IAA will be co-sponsoring the World Bank’s 3rd Contractual Savings Conference: Supervisory and Regulatory Issues in Private Pensions and Life Insurance on April 11-15, 2005 in Washington, DC. This year’s conference will focus on global standards for insurance and pension, risk-based supervision, risk management with a specific focus on asset and liability management, investment process and retirement products. Find out more about the exciting program and how you can participate. MAY 1-3: Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) Symposium, Chicago Downtown Sheraton www.ermsymposium.org MAY 16-19: Asset Liability Management - Techniques and Practices for Insurance Companies presented by the Society of Actuaries and Nexus Generations at the Royal Windsor in Brussels, Belgium, May 16-19, 2005
Faculty For more information: www.nexusgenerations.com/courses.html MAY 27: Groupe Consultatif 18th Annual Colloquium: The Colloquium, ”New Challenges to the Actuarial Profession: Implementation of the International Accounting Standards and new European solvency system”, will be held on May 27, 2005 in Lisbon, Portugal. See the brochure at www.gcactuaries.org/documents/18th_colloq_brochure.pdf. AUGUST 8-12: Dependent risks in actuarial science and finance: The 18th International Summer School 2005 of the Swiss Association of Actuaries will be held August 8-12, 2005 at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland. For more information and online pre-registration, see the web site: www.saa-iss.ch. Deadline for registration is March 31, 2005. AUGUST 25 TO SEPTEMBER 2: Second Brazilian Conference on Statistical Modeling in Insurance and Finance: Ubatuba, São Paulo from August 25 to September 2, 2005. The conference encourages the submission of original research papers, work-in-progress reports, future research proposals, practical problems expecting solution and students papers. Full details on this scientific conference are available at www.ime.usp.br/~ubatuba/2nd/. SEPTEMBER 12-15: The 13th EAAC, Bali, Indonesia: Registration for the 13th East Asian Actuarial Conference has started. The brochure regarding the conference program and registration details can be downloaded from here. This Conference has established its reputation as the vital meeting place for actuaries in the Asian region to network and to get up to speed on the most current issues affecting the profession. Please be informed that the cut-off date for early bird registration is 30 June 2005. OCTOBER 6-8: Workshop on New Mathematical
Methods in Risk Theory Those interested in presenting a communication in the previous or other areas related to Risk Theory can submit Title and Abstract before the deadline of May 31, 2005 by following the on line procedure in the Workshop web site www.riskworkshop.it. For any further information, please contact marcello.galeotti@dmd.unifi.it, tel. 39-055-4796821 Long Range Planning The International Actuarial Events Calendar is the perfect tool for your long range planning. Visit it often through the link on the IAA’s home page. Member associations are encouraged to post their events in the calendar to make the tool as useful as possible. If you have misplaced your association’s login and password, send an email to secretariat@actuaries.org. Institute of Actuaries of Australia New Part III The Institute of Actuaries of Australia has introduced a new Part III education program in 2005 which comprises the four modules managed and delivered by the Institute. Students are required to complete two compulsory subjects: Investments, and Commercial Actuarial Practice and select two modules (A and B) which constitute one of the following specialist subjects: Life Insurance, General Insurance, Superannuation & Planned Savings, Investment Management and Finance. Of the two compulsory subjects: The Investments course comprises a comprehensive collection of seminal readings and web-based e-learning material and the Commercial Actuarial Practice course will be conducted as a six-day residential program and will be assessed by means of a full-day written report in addition to a final examination. The Investments course will provide students with a thorough grounding in investment theory and practice which will help to underpin the specialist courses. The Commercial Actuarial Practice course will enhance students' ability to apply actuarial skills across a range of practice areas, apply ethical concepts, corporate governance requirements and actuarial professional standards and successfully communicate actuarial solutions to a range of audiences. 2005 Biennial Convention The Institute's Biennial Convention is a dynamic forum of information exchange and debate in the areas of insurance, superannuation, general insurance, funds management, health, risk management, banking and investment. Participants are drawn from within Australia and overseas, with an emphasis on the Asia Pacific region. The Institute's premier event will be held at the Cairns International Hotel in tropical North Queensland from Sunday 8 May to Wednesday 11 May. The theme for the Convention is SUSTAIN…ABILITY: ACTUARIES AND THE FUTURE. Sessions have been developed around the key issues of corporate sustainability, sustainable futures and sustainability of the profession. To register online go to www.actuaries.asn.au/PublicSite/convention. Review of Professional Standards, Code of Conduct and Disciplinary Scheme In response to recent domestic and international developments concerning corporate governance, and as part of its regular program of review, the Institute of Actuaries of Australia is currently undertaking an extensive review of professional standards. The Institute has established a task force of senior members of the profession to undertake a detailed review of the Institute's Code of Conduct. It is expected that a redraft of the Code will be ready for final adoption at the Institute's AGM in December this year. The key issues for this review are: the public interest duty of members; the definition of "actuarial advice"; the role of the Senior Actuary; use and misuse of actuarial advice; whistle blowing duties of members and potential conflicts of interest with employer/client confidentiality; transmission of advice to third parties, and the content of actuarial reports. The Institute is also conducting a review of the terminology used in professional standards with a view to ensuring that consistent language is used in all standards to clearly denote mandatory and discretionary requirements for members. Finally, the Institute is conducting a review of the Disciplinary Scheme to capitalise on recent experience under the Scheme and to ensure that the Scheme meets member and public expectations in terms of professional self-regulation. Key issues for this review are transparency, timeliness, the range of penalties available for discipline, and consistency of outcomes with relevant decisions from other official bodies such as regulators. Actuarial Evening 2005 “ Actuarial Evening, 2005” was organised by the Actuarial Society of India on February 14, 2005 at Diwan-i-Aam, Taj Mahal Hotel, New Delhi and sponsored by Munich Re, one of the leading global reinsurers. This is the fifth such evening with the first one being organised in February 2001. The evening provided a platform for actuarial interaction as well as being a forum to recognise actuarial achievement by way of various prizes. Notable persons present included Mr. Liyaquat Khan, President ASI, Mr. Alf Guldberg, IAA President, Mr. Michael Pomery, President Institute of Actuaries, Mr. Harvie Brown, President Faculty of Actuaries, Mr. C S Rao Chairman IRDA and Mr. Edward Reiche, Head of Life for Asia, Munich Re. In his address, Mr. Khan discussed the rapid growth of the ASI over the past 5 years, highlighting the tremendous increase in membership from 400 in 1999 to 4,000 in 2004. In terms of globalising the Indian actuarial profession, Mr. Khan indicated that ASI and the Casualty Actuarial Society were in the process of signing a mutual recognition agreement. He also shed some light on the progress being made in setting up the Mortality and Morbidity Investigation Bureau. On the 60th Anniversary of the ASI, the President felt that the actuarial profession in India had matured enough to face the various challenges confronting it and also was making meaningful and significant contribution on issues affecting the global actuarial community. In his address, Mr. Reiche highlighted the level of experience Munich Re is having being in operation for over 150 years. He expressed his company’s continued willingness to provide extensive support to the development of the Insurance Industry in India. Messrs. Pomery, Brown, and Guldberg, also made the programme memorable with their special addresses. Mr. Pomery raised the issue of professionalism within the actuarial profession and emphasized the need for maintaining the highest professional standards. Mr. Brown also expressed his view on professionalism and asked young actuaries to maintain confidentiality and avoid conflict of interest. Mr. Guldberg praised the achievements of the ASI. Mr. Khan presented the certificates of Fellowship and Associateship to Fellows and Associates respectively qualified during the year 2004. Six out of 11 newly qualified Fellows personally received their Fellowship certificates: Bharat Venkatatarmani, Gautam Kakar, Priscilla Pinto, Robert Charles, Sanchit Maini and Walter de Oude and 6 out of 19 new Associates were personally awarded Associateship certificates. Mr. M G Diwan presented the prizes in memory of Prof. G S Diwan to the five best papers presented in the 6th Global Conference of Actuaries. Mr. Richard Holloway, Managing Director, Watson Wyatt Insurance Consulting Pvt Ltd, India handed over Watson Wyatt India Prize for the best paper submitted in the 6th Global Conference of Actuaries under student category to Sanchit Maini and Sumit Narayanan. President’s Award for paper of Special Significance was handed over by Mr. C S Rao, Chairman, IRDA to Mr. S P Subhedar for his paper presented in the 6th Global Conference of Actuaries. Mr. Guldberg, presented the Meena Sidhwani Memorial Education Prize to Mr. Gautam Kakar for completing all his actuarial exams in the shortest span. Various Academic Excellence awards sponsored by several leading insurance/reinsurance companies were presented to students who excelled in their actuarial examinations during the year 2004. The Actuary India Year 2004 Best Article
Award was presented to authors of the best articles published in the magazine during the year
2004. The prizes were announced by Mr. Guldberg released the 2nd Indian Actuarial Journal. In concluding, Mr. G N Agarwal, Vice President, ASI gave the vote of thanks, which was followed by a musical programme with Cocktails and Dinner. All in all, this was an enjoyable and memorable programme that gave the participants an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of the Indian actuarial profession and for extensive global actuarial interaction. Israel Association of Actuaries The members of the Israeli Actuarial Association voted on December 20, 2004 to elect a new executive board and president for a two-year term. Mr. Ofer Brandt, the newly elected president and the chief life and health actuary at Clal Insurance, said that the "Actuarial profession in Israel is going through a time of ‘troubled water’ of new regulation changes affecting the duties, responsibilities and position of actuaries working in the Israeli insurance and pension markets." Mr. Brandt added, “It is the profession's opportunity as well as the duty and obligation to both strengthen the position of the actuaries and to ensure there are more good quality actuaries available to face the challenges of the coming years." Istituto Italiano degli Attuari (Italy) Write a paper, win a prize! Find out how. Institute of Actuaries (United Kingdom) Morris Review : Final Report Sir Derek Morris has published his final report on his review of the UK actuarial profession. The report recaps the various options identified in his interim assessment published last December and sets out Sir Derek's final conclusions and recommendations. As expected following the interim assessment, Sir Derek has proposed an independent Actuarial Standards Board within the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) and oversight of the profession's other activities by extending the role - and the name - of one of the FRC's existing boards so that it becomes the Professional Oversight Board for Accountancy & Actuaries (POBAA). The report leaves the detail of implementation to others. The Presidents and other senior members of the profession have already held talks with the FRC, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and several government departments. The Review has also made recommendations on a range of other topics, including education, compliance monitoring, conflicts, market testing and communications. Brief details of those recommendations can be found by clicking here and in full at the end of Sir Derek's report. The profession is very pleased that the final report has followed the course mapped out in Sir Derek's interim assessment, which it supported in its published response. It had accepted the need for change even before the Morris Review was announced. Several reforms were already in place and others had been announced. The real benefits delivered by the Morris Review were the extension of the profession's ideas in ways which it did not have the power to deliver for itself. The profession began this review process with confidence in the changes it had initiated, but receptive to new proposals. This stance has clearly been the right one. The profession thinks it is fair to say that there is nothing in the report that suggests it was going in the wrong direction or failing to address any major issues. As Sir Derek acknowledges in his report, "the review has built on changes already contemplated or initiated by the profession". Sir Derek is particularly complimentary about the response of the profession to the Review: "[The Profession] does not accept all the analysis of the interim assessment; but has nonetheless adopted a forward-looking stance, recognising that significant change is desirable, seeking to work with the grain of the options for reform and providing constructive input into the review's finalising of its recommendations." The tone of Sir Derek's report reflects the very thorough way in which the Review has assimilated information about actuaries and the work that they do. There are many aspects of the report which confirm the profession's original impression that Sir Derek has acquired a real insight into the challenges facing actuaries and into their strengths as well as their weaknesses. Casualty Actuarial Society (United States) Web Site: www.casact.org 2004-05 Officers Stephen P. D’Arcy President Membership Statistics (as of August 25, 2004) Fellows 2,635 Charles A. Hachemeister Prize for ASTIN and AFIR/ERM Papers The CAS awards an annual prize to the author of an ASTIN or AFIR/ERM paper, with emphasis in judging placed on the paper’s impact for North American actuaries and practicality of application. Papers eligible for the prize include articles, workshop articles, and invited papers published in the ASTIN Bulletin, in addition to papers and Speakers’ Corner papers presented at the ASTIN or AFIR/ERM Colloquium in the calendar year prior to the prize award. The amount of the prize is currently $1,000. Education and Examination Structure In 2005, the Casualty Actuarial Society will implement a revised preliminary education structure in conjunction with the Canadian Institute of Actuaries and the Society of Actuaries. Future Meetings and Seminars 2005 Spring Meeting - May 15, 16, 17, 18,
2005 2005 Annual Meeting - November 13, 14, 15,
16, 2005 Casualty Loss Reserve Seminar – September
12-13, 2005 Society of Actuaries (United States) Finance: Enhanced Regime Switching Equity Model Software Now Available This project presents an enhanced version of the Excel-based workbook that provides a two regime-switching model for equity performance and other functions. This version features faster processing times, expanded help information and runs in either Excel 2000 or Excel 2003. It can be downloaded on the SOA Web site at: www.soa.org/ccm/content/research-publications/research-projects/regime-switching-equity-model-workbook-beta-version/. Health: The Individual Disability Income Insurance Lapse Experience Study The Individual Disability Income Insurance Lapse Experience Study, which was jointly sponsored by the Society of Actuaries’ Individual Disability Insurance Experience Committee and LIMRA, is now complete and on the Society’s web site. This report can be found on the SoA web site at: www.soa.org/ccm/content/areas-of-practice/health/experience-studies/ind-dis-income-ins-lapse-exp/. Life: Individual Life Experience Study This study is the most recent in ongoing reporting of mortality experience under standard, fully underwritten life insurance policies. The report on the 1996-2000 policy years and the 1995-2000 period can be found on the SOA Web site at www.soa.org/ccm/content/research-publications/experience-studies-tools/1995-2000-individual-life-experience-report/. Retirement: Retirement Probability Analyzer Software Now On SOA Web Site Professor Moshe Milevsky and the IFID Centre have completed their development of software which explores in great detail the fundamental question of whether one will run out of money before dying, while maintaining a desired standard of living. The Retirement Probability Analyzer software, sponsored by the SOA Pension Section, is intended to serve as a pedagogical tool to help the user develop an intuition for the impact of various asset allocation and annuity purchase decisions. The software has generated significant interest in the popular press, including a feature article in the Wall Street Journal and interest from CNN. The program can be downloaded from the SOA Web site at: www.soa.org/ccm/content/areas-of-practice/special-interest-sections/pension/retirement-probability-analyzer-software/ 40th Actuarial Research Conference Pack your bags for historic Mexico City! Enjoy Mexico City and Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM) as you attend the 40th Actuarial Research Conference which ITAM is hosting August 11–13, 2005. The annual research conference not only offers an opportunity for academics and practitioners to gather and discuss actuarial problems and their solutions, it also encourages a dialogue regarding general actuarial issues. ITAM, one of Mexico’s leading business schools, is located on the southwest side of Mexico City. The university is home to the second largest actuarial program in Mexico and has played an important role in educating some of Mexico’s current leaders. It provides an electrically charged learning atmosphere. Rising from the ruins of Tenochtitlan, the ancient Aztec capital, Mexico City provides a unique opportunity to visit the reminders of the past along with new museums and art galleries. It is a vibrant cosmopolitan city, but also is home to many parks and ruins for you to explore. For further information on the conference
please contact: SNDT University In a pioneering effort, SNDT University, Mumbai, India, is conducting training programmes in Actuarial Science for men and women. SNDT University has been the first Women’s University in South Asia, and has immensely contributed to women’s education and growth in India. The Post Graduate Diploma in Actuarial Science at SNDT University covers the basics and goes beyond Core Technical papers: CT1 through CT9, of IOA / FOA or equivalent. The programme has been well received by the student community and industry professionals. The performance of students in this programme in professional examinations of the IOA / ASI has been excellent with a high success rate. For more information, please use the following link www.dsacted.com/aeducation.htm. 18th International Summer School 2005 of the Swiss Association of Actuaries on Dependent risks in actuarial science and finance Dates: Monday, August 8 to Friday, August
12, 2005 Please inform your colleagues who may be interested. For more information and online preregistration, see the web site: www.saa-iss.ch . François Dufresne October 2005: ILO and Univ. Lausanne launch Masters for Social Security Actuaries We are proud to introduce the new Masters in Actuarial Science with a Specialization in Social Security jointly sponsored by the University of Lausanne's Institute of Actuarial Sciences and the ILO. You may wish to consult the webpage www.msas.ch We call on your intervention to inform the authorities of the countries you are working with about the new Masters in Actuarial Science with Specialization in Social Security jointly sponsored by the ILO and the University of Lausanne's Institute of Actuarial Sciences. We aim at reaching quantitative and finance personnel of social insurance institutions and line ministries in charge of labour, finance and social policy and economic planning. You may wish to consult the webpage www.msas.ch In addition to actuarial mathematics and advanced quantitative theory and techniques and economic theory relevant to private insurance, the Masters will focus on social security financing and valuation techniques. Successful completion of the Masters serves to meet the educational requirements of the Syllabus of the Swiss Association of Actuaries. The Masters courses are delivered in English over a 2-year period of which 3 semesters must be spent in Lausanne and the last semester to draft a Masters' thesis on a selected topic and under the possible supervision of ILO social security specialists. We count on your support to disseminate this information. Questions may be addressed to Ms Anne Drouin (drouin@ilo.org), Mr Francois Dufresne (Francois.Dufresne@unil.ch) and Mr Wolfgang Scholz (scholz@ilo.org). While practical arrangements should be completed before the initial semester starts at the end of October 2005, registrations must absolutely be submitted by mail or internet to the REGISTRAR OFFICE of the University of Lausanne before 1 JUNE 2005 as mentioned on the website of the Masters www.msas.ch |
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(left
to right) Hassan Mohanna (Lebanon), Hussein Jbara (Lebanon), Mohammed Larbi Nouha
(Morocco), Wa'el Akram Asa'd Saqqa (Jordan), Fatma Kharusi (Oman), Rashid Al Meer (Bahrain),
Abdel Malek Alama (Yemen), Mohammad Karaki (Lebanon), H.E. General Emile Lahoud (President,
Lebanon), Ibrahim Muhanna (Lebanon), Yves Guérard (Secretary General, IAA), Curtis
Huntington (United States), Chris Symeonidis (Greece), Chris Daykin (United Kingdom),
George Psaras (Cyprus), Jamal Berry (Lebanon), Joseph Khalife (Lebanon)
(left
to right) Yves Guérard, Secretary General, IAA;
Ibrahim Muhanna, Chairman, Board of Trustees, The Muhanna Foundation; H.E. Mr. Assem Kansou,
Minister of Labour, Lebanon;
Dr. Mohammad Karaki, Director General, National Social Security Fund, Lebanon; and Michal
Rutkowski, Director, Human Development Sector MENA Region, The World Bank 
