The Actuarial Society of Ghana says the tremendous change in regulations surrounding the conduct of financial services business in Ghana requires the urgent look at regulatory issues such as capitalization, risk management practices, Asset-Liability Management (ALM) strategies, governance and more crucially and recently International  Financial Reporting Standards.

Though it agrees with the various regulators - the National Insurance Commission, the National Pension’s Regulatory Authority, the Bank of Ghana and the Security and Exchange Commission that the consolidated impact of these efforts and major changes is to ensure a sound and financially stable economy, it said a more critical growing concern is the availability of highly skilled economic work force to facilitate and guide these regulatory transitions.

Speaking at the Actuaries Society of Ghana Actuaries Connect Conference 2021, President of the Actuarial Society of Ghana, Neil Tagoe, said there is the need to take a second look at upcoming issues that substantially impact on the economic well being of the people.

“Not to duel on the financial service sector only, as that forms only a part of our national economic life,  there is still a myriad of upcoming issues that continues to substantially impact and play a significant part in the day-to-day lives of the ordinary Ghanaian that require more than the traditional skill of today’s risk professional”.

To consider a few, these major national issues, Mr. Tagoe said includes the ongoing national digitisation regime spearheaded by the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, disaster and crises management and its associated risk, climate change and climate risk, amongst others.

He therefore called for a strategic focus in mobilising enough resources to build the technical and professional competence that is required to fulfil these mandates in the future, adding “this, if successful and coupled with our core skills-set will position the profession as pillar of the future Ghana we envisage.”

He expressed worry that the challenges mentioned at the last conference has been carried over with deepening effects further to the spread of the new variants of the Covid-19 virus which happens to have stalled or slowed down general economic activities.  

A recap of both new and existing challenges that still lingers in shadows over the period, he said includes membership commitment to Society’s course, poor publicity of the profession, financial resources for the management of the Actuaries Society of Ghana Secretariat, still-growth in the non-life practice and retention of student member candidates in industry.

Though the preceding year through the first half of this year have been characterised by no significant activities for the general membership, the President of ASG stressed that the committee meetings have been consistent in trying to proffer solutions to the challenges we are confronted with as a professional organization.

“Our Committees and the ASG Secretariat’s activities may not be visible to all, but the resultant effect of their efforts to curtail the challenges are evident with lasting future impacts soon to hit the entire actuarial community and the industries where members work.”

He expressed some of the success chalked as a strategic plan to implement a full-scale non-Life actuarial office role by the Non-Life Committee and the development of an ASG Education Pathway by the Education Committee.

Meanwhile, ASG has invited all industry and non-industry players to the 6th African Actuarial Conference in March next year which Ghana would be hosting.