October 2008 - Campaign for JKUASA Chairpersonship - The speech that never was!

Speech to Be Delivered on a Probable Campaign Day

Morning guys,

Before I start, Id like to thank you all for your audience. Its an honour to be given this platform to address young, intelligent, informed, and educated leaders. Its not everywhere that you are given this opportunity, I mean, addressing leaders in their formal education stage is no small feat.

I say leaders because I believe that we are all headed to leadership in various sectors and capacities in the private and public arenas. Actuarial Science is a course of leaders. Its all about problem solving and as we all know, leadership is required in finding solutions to problems. Therefore we are all called to leadership in the insurance industry, agricultural sector, health finance, stock market, government business etcetera.

Page 1 of 5

We know that each of us has a distinct reason for choosing Actuarial Science. And I say, it is a worthy choice because Actuarial Science is a noble profession. It demands that we are knowledgeable, open-minded, that we work with facts and figures, that we are result-oriented and most of all HONEST.

So, now, we are enrolled, are studying, after this we finish, do the professional exams, get well-paying jobs, make money... Thats good. But lets direct our eyes first to the big picture. MY BIG PICTURE tells me that markets need stability, that the insurance industry needs to expand, that wealth should be protected from market crashes, that shareholders need to be confident that their assets are in competent hands, that as the economy grows everyone should benefit, that there are PROBLEMS TO BE SOLVED. And you are right, SOLUTION PROVIDERS ARE NEEDED. So we are in the right course.

When we come nearer home, we understand that challenges are here with us. One of them is that we need to pass our CATs, exams, assignments and projects. We need to be at least certain that we will get a job. We need some hands-on experience and we also need accreditation from the actuarial bodies for the work covered. And I believe that the reason weve
Page 2 of 5

gathered here is not only to listen to what the aspirants have in store, or share some light moments; but to learn how we can collectively address these challenges. That is why I AM OFFERING MYSELF FOR THE POST OF CHAIRPERSON OF THE JOMO KENYATTA UNIVERSITY ACTUARIAL STUDENTS ASSOCIATION (JKUASA).

Welcome to JKUASA where challenges to actuarial students are addressed. It is the answer to how we find answers to issues that concern us. And guess what, JKUASA is you and me.

I am running because I believe that I am capable and ready for the responsibilities and challenges ahead. I have harboured a vision of improving the status and welfare of the actuarial fraternity here in JKUAT. This vision has provided me with specific areas that Id want us to work on, which include:

(1) Liaison with our academic staff and the Actuarial Society of Kenya towards recognition of our courses by the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries in the UK.

Page 3 of 5

(2) Assistance to students undertaking the Actuarial Science course from the Actuarial Science department in securing field work attachments. (3) Provision of more Actuarial books to the students from the University Library. (4) Hosting of Actuaries and related professionals for insights in the current trends of the Actuarial profession.

In addition, I would implore that we talk more, yaani tuongee zaidi. Lets share ideas, network as at now, time t. Lets talk about world issues, financial issues, economic issues, general issues, ACTUARIAL ISSUES. Let us also work hard in our studies to show that we are viable. I actually think that the profession is in its runway stage in Kenya. It is for us to lift it off, to give it that push for it to gain recognition and relevance. We are totally needed in this economy; we just must demonstrate our importance, through open-mindedness, lets show that solutions to problems are at hand. Lets also ensure that the profession is current at every time, changing according to the ever-changing circumstances.

Finally, problems in the real world are quite complex. I think the reason we are taught courses for Actuarial science is not to make it hard for us to pass but to make us conclusive stewards of our resources. The larger the
Page 4 of 5

obstacle, the larger the effort and the more refined the skill needed to overcome it.

THANK YOU ALL AND GOD BLESS YOU.

Daniel Mutuku

Page 5 of 5