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Old Mutual Insure and WITS launch Actuarial Risk Lab

ARTICLE BY

  • Caesar Balona
  • Head: Risk Intelligence & Engineering
  • Old Mutual Insure

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Old Mutual Insure has partnered with the University of the Witwatersrand (WITS) to establish WITS Old Mutual Insure Actuarial Risk Lab, a new research initiative aimed at advancing the use of artificial intelligence, machine learning and actuarial science to better understand and respond to emerging risks such as climate change.

The lab will serve as a hub for cutting-edge research, postgraduate training and collaboration between academia and industry, focusing on the application of advanced analytics to risk modelling in insurance and finance.

Caesar Balona, Head: Risk Intelligence & Engineering at Old Mutual Insure, says the partnership reflects the insurer’s strong commitment to supporting the development of critical skills and research capacity in South Africa to better prepare for and navigate emerging risks. We have identified climate change as a particularly important focus for the lab.

“Climate change is one of the most significant and complex risks facing the insurance industry and society globally. As an insurer, we have a responsibility not only to understand these risks, but also to help the country prepare for them. Our partnership with WITS to establish the Actuarial Risk Lab reflects our commitment to advancing the research, tools and expertise needed to better model and respond to these evolving challenges,” Balona says.

He adds that collaboration between academia and industry is essential to building a deeper understanding of emerging risks.

The lab will focus on a number of key objectives, including the development of machine learning and deep learning applications within actuarial science, as well as the creation of specialised professional Master’s programmes that integrate actuarial science with advanced data science and machine learning techniques.

A major focus of the research will be climate-related risk modelling, including the development of actuarial and machine learning models capable of predicting the potential impacts of climate change on the insurance industry and its clients. The lab will also explore how machine learning can improve understanding of the mechanisms that drive climate change and the ways in which these factors influence insurance risk.

The lab will also support postgraduate development through Master’s and PhD research programmes, as well as postdoctoral fellowships, while hosting seminars, workshops and conferences that bring together researchers, industry practitioners and policymakers to exchange knowledge and insights.

Additional areas of research will include the application of actuarial techniques to the design and evaluation of environmental, social and governance (ESG) frameworks for the insurance sector.

According to Rendani Mbuvha, Associate Professor of Actuarial Science at WITS, the partnership represents an important step in strengthening industry-focused research in emerging risk areas.

“We are grateful for Old Mutual Insure’s support through this leading sponsorship of the WITS Old Mutual Insure Actuarial Risk Lab. This partnership enables both applied and foundational work in AI and machine learning for risk management, strengthening industry-focused research and programmes that respond to the rapidly evolving risk landscape across insurance, finance and the public sector,” says Mbuvha.

The establishment of the WITS Old Mutual Insure Actuarial Risk Lab reflects a growing recognition that advanced analytics, artificial intelligence and actuarial science will play a critical role in understanding and managing complex risks, particularly those related to climate change and environmental shifts.

Through the initiative, both organisations aim to strengthen South Africa’s research capacity and equip future actuarial professionals with the tools needed to navigate an increasingly complex risk environment.

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