The Actuarial Academy of East Africa is a non-profit institution established in 2018 to support development and mentorship of actuarial science students in the Eastern African region.
The IFoA Foundation has stepped in to support the Actuarial Academy by transforming it into an e-learning model. This is through supporting procurement, implementation and operationalisation of an e-learning management system that will enable a scalable and affordable learning solution to the actuarial science in their journey towards qualification and professional development.
IFoA TASK Event Education Irene Redman.
There are less than 100 actuaries in the $220 Bn GDP Eastern and Central African market, compared to 1,277 actuaries operating in the South African market, which has a $351 Bn GDP. Mukami Njeru, Director AAEA, says IFoA Foundation’s move is in line with the academy’s mission: that of making sure the EAC market has at least 700 actuaries in the very near future. And how does AAEA seek to achieve this?
“We have come up with a model to achieve this number within the shortest time possible. Let’s call it actuaries supporting each other. We have partnered with Kenya’s actuarial body, the TASK, whose pool of qualified members have volunteered to be tutors and mentors. Presently, there are over 300 TASK’s Standard Members pursuing full qualification in their respective globally certified papers.
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The Actuarial Society of Kenya, TASK, is the professional body that is mandated in Kenya to support and protect the interests of the members. Moses Mutuli, TASK’s President, says the AAEA is core to one of the Council’s 2019-2021 agenda; Connecting, Governance, Excellence, and Thought Leadership.
“Under Excellence, the Council will work, through its Education Working Party, on policies that, if well adopted, will take back the profession to the days when it was the choice for the highly numerate. One of the routes we are pursuing is through supporting the AAEA activities,” says Mr Mutuli.
Moses Mutuli on Council’s 2019-2021 Agenda:
IFoA Foundation has made inroads in the African market by making immense contributions towards progression of the actuarial profession. It was introduced during Tan Suee Chieh’s regime, by raising funds to support IFoA’s extensive community.
“I am delighted to see the Foundation launched during my year as President. We now have a real focus on supporting the actuarial profession, both in the UK and overseas, so much good will come from this initiative,” says Suee Chieh, the immediate Past-President, IFoA.
During its launch, Kartina Tahir Thomson, Chair of Trustees added that the overarching aim for the Foundation was to bring actuaries together to support others. “I look forward to your enthusiasm and involvement. The other Trustees and I are pleased to work with you to make an impact to our community and the actuarial profession as a whole,” she said.
AAEA was launched in February 2018 in the presence of practicing actuaries across the region. Throughout the years, TASK qualified actuaries have been going through a ‘Train-the-Trainer’ program, developed and implemented by Holly Bakke, Esq – an American
attorney who once served as Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance.
AAEA Launch
At its optimal capacity, AAEA is expected to tackle all phases of actuarial development (insurance, pension, investment and banking), to support qualification of actuaries and actuarial analysts, to provide continuing education, to develop specialisation to meet market demands such as reserving and pricing, to conduct research, to promote professionalism, and to set best practise in actuarial work.
