New leadership for the Actuarial Society of South Africa

The Actuarial Society of South Africa (ASSA) will be under new leadership from 1 July 2024 when Imran Mahomed steps into the role of Chief Executive Officer.

Mahomed takes over from Mike McDougall, who, after 11 years at the helm, has been appointed Director of Learning at the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA) in the UK.

Mahomed qualified as a Fellow of the Actuarial Society of South Africa (FASSA) in 2003 and has served as ASSA Education Executive full-time since January. In 2023, Mahomed consulted to ASSA on educational matters while also coordinating the Honours programme for the School of Statistics and Actuarial Science at the University of the Witwatersrand.

Following a fast-paced career of more than 20 years in financial services that culminated in launching a successful multinational insurtech business in 2016, Mahomed decided in 2020 to change direction and focus on giving back through mentoring and nurturing students into the profession.

Announcing the appointment, Costa Economou, President of ASSA, says Mahomed emerged from a robust and detailed recruitment process as the candidate best positioned to lead and guide the South African actuarial profession in an environment where change and uncertainty demand a strong focus on relevance.

Economou adds that an education curriculum aligned to the fast-changing environment in which actuaries operate, combined with relevant and leading research, underpins the Society’s value proposition for its members. “Ensuring a relevant actuarial profession that is not only qualified to solve challenges unique to our country but that is also respected internationally is the Society’s principal goal. As the ASSA Council, we believe Imran is the right candidate to lead the Society’s efforts in this regard.”

Mahomed also leads a sub-committee appointed by the ASSA Council tasked with improving the pace of transformation within the profession. “Imran has first-hand experience of the struggles faced by students at the university level and also has deep insights into the challenges faced by student actuaries on the long road to achieving their Fellowship,” comments Economou.

According to Mahomed, ASSA’s ongoing relevance will depend on its ability to continue facilitating an impactful actuarial profession for the South African context. “To achieve this, we as a Society must prioritise engagements with key partners, including universities, employers, regulators, and international professional organisations. We must take direction from our key stakeholders to achieve practical outcomes for our members, such as the inclusion of data analytics and artificial intelligence in the syllabus and ensuring an improved approach to work-based learning.”