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It’s a GAS in the Gulf By Catherine Love Soper The Gulf is an exciting place to work as an actuary; insurance markets are still in their infancy, meaning the growth potential is enormous, pension schemes are still open and populations are young. With this year’s focus on the future diversity of the actuarial profession, the support we give to the 45% of IFoA members who are based abroad is a high-profile topic. So I was pleased to launch the Gulf Actuarial Society (GAS) with IFoA chief executive Derek Cribb last November in Dubai. The new society establishes a community for actuaries who are working in the region, and its international membership comes from not just the six GCC states but also India, the UK, South Africa and beyond. Professional diversity and the future is a natural priority; the GAS believes the key lies in supporting today’s rising stars. I was particularly delighted to come across one such star, Adeeba Al Tamimi (right). As well as being charismatic and intelligent, Adeeba is the first and only female Saudi
IFoA student and, before long, she could become the first female Saudi Fellow. This would be a distinct and fantastic achievement. I asked Adeeba about her experiences and challenges, and she said the main one was still “the lack of awareness of this field” – something GAS hopes to address. She said, “I recall my first attempt to contact major insurance firms [in Saudi Arabia]. To my surprise, some representatives had never heard of the actuarial field.” She also talked of encouraging more women to enter the profession: “It is a great initiative that the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals offers an Actuarial Science degree, but it is a ‘male only’ university. Introducing the course to female universities would encourage women to enter this field. [I] believe these developments will come. There are plenty of capable, hardworking women in Saudi Arabia who will excel in this profession as local opportunities become available.” For details of GAS, go to:
bit.ly/1xwGSGO. For the full article, visit:
www.theactuary.co.uk
Black runs and raising funds By Martin Miles (Master 2014-15) Just before Christmas, the Worshipful Company of Actuaries (WCA) had a very jolly carol service at St Lawrence Jewry Church next to the Guildhall. About 80 actuaries and friends then went on to supper at Armourer’s Hall, followed by more singing led by Peter and Sue Thompson and baritone Allan Arthur. It was a fun evening and a great start to Christmas festivities. The last big event for the WCA was the livery companies’ skiing competition in Morzine, France, on 23-24 January. There are a number of trophies to be won, including the Actuaries Cup in which times are age-adjusted by a simple formula we invented but which is deemed to be fiendishly opaque and suspicious by the other teams participating. As the actuaries have written
the software to determine the results for all of the trophies, we do start each race with a bit of an advantage. We hope, therefore, to regain the trophy for the best court team, which we won last year in a tight finish, aided by a masterly giant slalom exhibition from president of the IFoA, Nick Salter. While on the sporting theme, congratulations to Gary Anderson, who has been chosen as the actuary to take up the guaranteed place in the
2015 London Marathon granted to us. He will be raising money for the Company of Actuaries Charitable Trust and I hope many of you will support his sterling efforts. If you are interested in joining the Livery Company, or just want to find out more about it, please email Adrian Waddingham at:
adrian.waddingham@ barnett-waddingham.co.uk or contact me at
martinwmiles@yahoo.co.uk Left to right: Nick Salter, Martin Miles and Fiona Morrison on the slopes
A networking opportunity for London students By Cian Ó Críodáin The London Market Students’ Group, (LMSG) is a networking and informationsharing community of student actuaries who work in the London market. Our goal is to expose students to new ideas and hot topics in the market, as well as giving them the chance to meet senior market figures and peers in other companies. The LMSG is run by a five-member committee. The committee is currently chaired by Cian Ó Críodáin of XL Reinsurance and draws its other members from companies, brokers and consultancies. Our main function is to organise a number of talks each year, with one taking place roughly every quarter. These talks are typically held in the function room of a local bar, with a drinks reception funded by the speaker’s firm or the Actuarial Recruitment Company. The setting is relatively informal so as to encourage students to ask questions and to feel comfortable approaching the speaker after the talk. Previous speakers have included brokers, chief actuaries, chairs of general insurance working parties and others besides. If you or someone you know would be interested in attending our events, please email Cian at: cian.ocriodain@xlgroup.com.
Do you know someone who deserves a charity award nomination? Each year the Worshipful Company of Actuaries presents the Phiatus Award to an actuary who has made an impressive contribution to charity. Nominations are now invited for the 2014 award and should be sent to the editor of The Actuary. The award is not simply for fundraising. Although we do want to hear about impressive fundraising efforts – we will recognise all forms of charitable work and activity. Send your nominations to:
editor@theactuary.com We would be delighted to hear from you if you have any newsworthy items for these pages. Contact Yvonne Wan at social@theactuary.com
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