Deloitte Ghana launches School of Actuarial Excellence to grow insurance, financial markets

Deloitte Ghana has launched School of Actuarial Excellence to equip professionals and help grow the insurance and financial sectors.The goal is to give practical experiences to professionals within the insurance industry and national service personnel who want to build their capacity and knowledge in the field with regard to the International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS).Speaking at the launch, Mr Daniel Kwadwo Owusu, Country Managing Partner, said actuarial study and practice was crucial to the financial and other sectors of the economy as it bothered on risk management, business strategy and investment and finance, amongst others.He said in the process of publishing their first set of financial statements, they had identified some gaps in the implementation of the IFRS.'Our aim for setting up the school is to just run those practical training and give the trainees practical sense of what actuarial means,' he said.Mr Owusu said Ghana did not have enough qualified actuaries, making it more d ifficult when implementing the standard, and so in the short to medium term, they intended to train over 200 actuaries.He said: 'As we speak, some of the insurance companies have not been able to publish their financial statements. So it is a real challenge and it is the reason we have to create a platform that generates the knowledge and personnel.'Mr Owusu said they had been working with National Insurance Commission (NIC) in terms of drawing a timetable for the implementation of the standard and institutions in the value chain were looking forward to bringing their staff to the school.Mrs Esther Armah, Head, Reinsurance and Anti-Money Laundering, NIC, said the NIC embraced innovation and creativity as a catalyst for growth of the insurance industry considering the important role and value of actuaries.'As the economy expands, individuals and businesses will have a greater capacity to purchase insurance products to protect their assets and mitigate risks. Let's make good use of these opportunities t o grow our market. The insurance industry is evolving. Let's find the many challenges,' she addedMrs Armah said Deloitte's School of Actuarial Excellence, would help actuarial resources persons to be abreast with the latest regulatory developments and actuarial techniques.Dr Kwabena Situ, Partner, Assurance Services, said, the practical training would be intensive for three months, equipped in new ways of measuring insurance risks, and would thereafter be attached to the Deloitte School of Actuarial Units across Africa.Dr Kingsley Kwasi Kwabahson, Chief Executive Officer, Ghana Insurers Association, called on industry players to accord actuaries support in their supervisory role, adding that there should be a collaboration among all stakeholders to create a more sanitised actuarial industry.Source: Ghana News Agency