Description: I volunteered to assist with the Actuaries Without Borders Global Mentorship Program both as a mentor and deputy program manager. This article summarizes the lessons I have learned from my first year of involvement. I hope to inform readers about the obstacles actuaries face in developing countries and to encourage them to consider participating in this program.

Description: In this issue, Actuary of the Future editor Yuan Yuan invites Doug French, the managing principal of the Insurance and Actuarial Advisory Services practice of Ernst & Young LLP’s Financial Services Organization, to share about his experiences and views on the actuarial profession.

Description: Chairperson's update on the International Section.

Description: Catastrophic exposure is on the rise owing to extreme weather and economic development of the past few years. Catastrophic claims peaked in 2017, but continue to pose a challenge to insurance markets. Global reinsurers seem to be well-capitalized despite the increase in CAT claims. But emerging insurance markets show a wide protection gap relative to more advance markets. Can reinsurance play a role in helping to narrow the gap? This article examines a few ideas.

Description: Description of 2018 activities by SOA in Asia and Latin America including professional development, member networks in, university visits and more, to inform SOA members and stakeholders.

Description: SOA Asia-Pacific and China Annual Symposia Held in Guiyang and Bangkok.

Description: Microinsurance mechanisms provide coverage to low income earners, but a growing middle class is often lacking adequate access to insurance services. The author explores ways in which insurance may be more accessible.

Description: The collective investment in transforming the life insurance proposition exceeds anything seen in the last thirty years — a working lifetime. As one would expect, reinsurers are playing a major role. The past five years have seen global reinsurers raise the bar on client experience to new levels, while also investing, expanding and re-organizing to support the transformation of the primary insurance industry, and in so doing also their own.

Description: Reprinted from Impact Insurance Facility blog as part of the International Labour Organisation.

Description: This article by Carlos Arocha explores the protection gap throughout Latin America for coverage against natural catastrophic events. As climate change has increased both the frequency and severity of these events, coverage gaps have weighed on both household and public sector economics. In the article, Carlos highlights different methods for evaluating the size of this protection gap, and discusses a number of different ideas for closing this gap, through private sector initiatives, public sector changes, or private-public partnerships.