Actuarial Growth in the Middle East, Africa & Pakistan Region

By Shoaib Soofi

International News, May 2024

The Society of Actuaries (SOA) set up a task force in 2021 for the Middle East, Africa & Pakistan (MAP) region with the objectives of growth and development of the actuarial profession and SOA presence in the region. Actuaries from different countries in the MAP region voluntarily joined the task force working with SOA staff—mainly Sofi Garcia and Andy Peterson. Considering the interest from the market including employers, actuaries and educational institutions and the great potential of the region, the task force was upgraded to a permanent committee in 2023.

Besides constituting the MAP Committee, the SOA also recently opened a regional office in Dubai with a full time regional director and marketing officer.

The committee has undertaken several activities including:

• Visited universities to encourage and support actuarial study programs.
• Conducted two IFRS17 series webinars (first in 2022 on the technical side and second in 2023 on implementation challenges).
• Held two regional symposiums in 2022 and 2023 in Dubai, UAE, and Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA).
• Organized a seminar on Risk Management in Riyadh, KSA, in collaboration with the KSA Regulator.
• Participated in many local actuarial events like the Arab Actuarial Conference, Nigerian Actuarial Society Conference, etc.
• The committee also met with several employers and regulators in the region and discussed prospects of developing the actuarial profession in their respective countries. 

If you want to know more about the region and our upcoming activities or want to contribute in anyway, please do get in touch with us by simply sending us an email. Feel free to reach out to me or to any of our committee members listed below.

MAP Committee members:

• Kofi NTIM, Kenya    
• Anthony Kadima, Nigeria  
• Anthony Tippa, Ghana
• Mohammad Jaffar Iqbal, Qatar; Represents MAP on the SOA International Committee
• Dana Barhoumeh', Saudi Arabia
• Josee Deroy, SOA Board Member
• Wassim Tabbah, Lebanon
• Roba Bairakdar, Egypt
• Mahmood Almalki, Saudi Arabia
• Usama Dangra, Pakistan
• Shoaib Soofi, United Arab Emirates; Chair of MAP Committee 
• Sofi Garcia, SOA Developing Markets Lead
• Andrew Peterson, SOA International Managing Director
• Zain Ibrahim, SOA Regional Director, MEASA (Middle East, Africa, South Asia)

MAP committee in Dubai

MAP committee with attendees in Dubai

MAP committee in Riyadh

Statements of fact and opinions expressed herein are those of the individual authors and are not necessarily those of the Society of Actuaries, the editors, or the respective authors’ employers.

Shaoib Soofi, FSA, is global product review head, Actuarial Services, at MetLife in DAFZA, Dubai. He can be reached at Shoaib.soofi@metlife.ae.