This article originally appeared in the CIA (e)Bulletin.
By Alicia Rollo, CHRL
I had the privilege recently of representing both the International Actuarial Association (IAA) and the CIA at education-related meetings in Jakarta, Indonesia. The meetings were a result of the project READI (Risk Management, Economic Sustainability and Actuarial Science Development in Indonesia), which is a cooperation between Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and the Government of Indonesia with the University of Waterloo (UW) serving as the Canadian executing agency. The objective of the project is to establish Indonesia as a regional centre of actuarial excellence by working with high schools and universities, the local professional actuarial association, government agencies, and the insurance and pensions industries, to increase the number of quality Indonesian actuarial science graduates available and to strengthen the profession overall in the region.
The CIA is a strong supporter of building the capacity of the profession internationally and as such, was an early advocate for the initiative, providing a letter of support to Waterloo in 2014 to assist their proposal to GAC for funding. Additionally, through CIA member Yves Guérard, we have made a variety of CIA resources and information available to the Actuarial Association of Indonesia (known as PAI), and we hosted a delegation of academics, government representatives, and READI project representatives here in Ottawa in the fall of 2018 to support their capacity building.
Curriculum review
While the project has many ongoing initiatives, the primary purpose of the meetings in Jakarta was curriculum review and development and to confirm agreement among universities for minimum curriculum standards for actuarial science education. The agenda was designed to provide the nine partner universities who are participating in the project with an overview of the new IAA syllabus as well as the education systems of the Society of Actuaries and Institute and Faculty of Actuaries in the UK. They also learned about the hybrid nature of the CIA’s education system – a mix of our own education programs and outsourced components, governed by the CIA syllabus, the Policy on Qualification Requirements, and the Bylaws. A significant amount of time was also spent discussing the CIA’s University Accreditation Program and the immense advantages of a strong collaboration between academia and the profession.
The universities represented at the meeting are excited and eager to deliver high-quality programs, designed not only to meet the recently revised IAA syllabus, but also to potentially meet accreditation standards for recognition by other actuarial organizations internationally.
Sustainability
The READI team has done an impressive job with the project over its duration, and as they enter the final year of its official funding, the emphasis is rightly on ensuring sustainability of the work that has been done to ensure that the PAI, Indonesian universities, local government, and industry continue to build a strong and vibrant profession. My personal thanks to Ken Seng Tan, Chief Actuarial Advisor, READI and Sun Fellow in International Actuarial Science at the University of Waterloo, Bill Duggan, Field Director, READI, and Ivonne Rawis, Office Manager, READI, in Indonesia for their immense hospitality and for the important work they are doing. Additionally, I am grateful to Mathieu Langelier, Executive Director of the IAA, for the invitation to help support and represent the IAA on this particular initiative.
CIA members can be proud of the work being done by UW, enabled by the Canadian government. It is one more example of how Canada punches well above its weight on the international front.
Alicia Rollo, CHRL, is Director, Education and International Affairs, at the CIA.
