25 Lebanese Years of Experience with the Society of Actuaries
By Marc Tarazi
International News, November 2024
My journey with the Society of Actuaries started in 1999, I was a first year BSc university student at Notre Dame University‑Lebanon. I was lucky to pass what was then called "exam 100" covering calculus and "exam 140" testing financial mathematics. In 2000, the SOA exam was reformed and I had a better experience with courses 2, 3 and 4. However, my best and most rewarding exam experience was in 2006 with the "Fundamentals of Actuarial Practice," which introduced me for the first time to practical problem-solving on Microsoft Excel and real-world feedback from experts within the problem-solving framework of the "actuarial control cycle" through a well-designed e-learning platform. I was actually so satisfied with the FAP that I retook it years later as professional development with an exceptional authorization from the SOA since I believed my beautiful experience with FAP was worth further meditation and reflection.
In 2007, I celebrated joining the Society of Actuaries as an associate (ASA) and was actually the first ever graduate at my university in Lebanon to have reached the ASA level. At this time, unfortunately, the SOA had no direct human interaction or dialogue with Lebanon and the Middle East, beyond exam administration.
The situation improved significantly with the fully dedicated international department at the SOA and the Middle East, Africa and Pakistan (MAP) Task Force. This genuinely transformed my experience with the SOA. The close involvement between the SOA and local actuarial communities in Lebanon and the Middle East helped me live a radically new professional experience. I served as a volunteer in the first task force and was able to coordinate SOA services to five local Lebanese universities offering actuarial educational programs and their students. The first SOA webinar of the MAP Task Force on "Actuaries, Professionalism and Ethics" offered in December 2021 was a true success and I was honored to join as a speaker. Being a member of the MAP Task Force helped me realize my dream of participating in an authentically international actuarial panel sharing best practices and contributing to the advancement of the actuarial profession.
In July 2022, I joined the Board of Directors of the Lebanese Association of Actuaries (LAA) as treasurer. The SOA provided significant support to the LAA by being generous enough to sponsor its first meeting, which launched its reformation and expansion.
My professional experience has included actuarial roles in Europe and Lebanon, seven years of actuarial consulting at Muhanna & co. Actuarial Services in Beirut, Lebanon and 10 years of experience in the research and development of a regional reinsurer "Arab Re." I have been actively engaged since 2021 in actuarial research and modelling related to Non-Life Treaty Reinsurance as Deputy Manager - Actuarial Services at Chedid Re also in Lebanon. In June 2024, I proudly delivered my insights on the "Actuarial Methods in Non-Life Treaty Reinsurance Pricing" at the Eleventh Annual Conference of the Lebanese Society for the Mathematical Sciences (LSMS) hosted by Notre Dame University - Lebanon. Working on the different aspects of Natural Catastrophe modelling, Pareto, Lognormal and stochastic analysis is certainly a fulfilling and rewarding experience and a gives a sense of lifetime actuarial achievement and humble pride.
Through all these experiences, I believe the SOA fulfilled—and is fulfilling—the role of a genuinely global actuarial organization in Lebanon and the Middle East. They are actively listening to needs and concerns with a human presence and a human touch. Clearly my Lebanese 25 years of experience with the SOA drastically shifted from exam taking into a one very warm global actuarial family governed by the same promising vision with authentic actuarial colleagues ready to help and assist.
My deepest gratitude to the Society of Actuaries and its staff for having strengthened my actuarial education and helped me assume promising positions. With special gratitude to Andrew Peterson, director of international relations at the SOA for his trust and empowerment, Past SOA President John Robinson (2023–2024) for being ready to listen and serve and Past SOA Board Member Josée Deroy for her ongoing encouragement.
I look forward to serve even further with the SOA and its active involvement in Lebanon and the Middle East—continuing on my lifelong learning path with my SOA truly global family.
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.
Marc Tarazi, ASA, ALAA, is deputy manager - Actuarial Services at Chedid Re and board member and treasurer of the Lebanese Association of Actuaries (LAA). He can be reached at MTarazi@chedidre.com.