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The University of Waterloo International Development Group (IDG) provides world class technical assistance and project management services to help international, regional and local partners achieve their development goals. Leveraging unique expertise and capabilities from uWaterloo’s internationally renowned faculty and staff, we offer cutting edge capacity in sectors where uWaterloo possesses specialized skills and knowledge.

READI's Field Director, Bill Duggan was recently featured in the Society of Actuaries online magazine which focused on READI's efforts to develop actuaries and actuarial science in Indonesia.

Macleans recently published an article on how the University of Waterloo's READI project is successfully preparing Indonesia for the effects of climate change through risk management and actuarial science.

The WIRED magazine published an article, "The Sea Is Consuming Jakarta, and Its People Aren't Insured," in which it looked at Jakarta is sinking, and at the worst possible time. Journalist Matt Simon states, "As sea levels creep higher, the coastal megalopolis continues to pump too much water from its underlying aquifers, causing the land to collapse by almost a foot a year in some places.

Industry 4.0 has generated a new focus towards globalization and technology in Indonesia.  The emphasis on digital economic patterns, big data, robotics and artificial intelligence means exciting new opportunities for education.  Indonesian universities need to be more innovative in their curriculum and teaching to produce new generations of competent and competitive graduates in the face of this era of industrial revolution.  The ability to think critically, systemically, laterally and entrepreneurial are all key cognitive skills required of today’s post-secondary students.

In April 2019, READI  invited Alicia Rollo, CHRL from the Canadian Institute of Actuaries (CIA), to represent both the International Actuarial Association (IAA) and the Canadian Institute of Actuaries at education-related meetings in Jakarta, Indonesia. CIA has been a strong supporter for READI and its work from the very beginning with their letter of support to the University of Waterloo in 2014 to aid their proposal to Global Affairs Canada for the funding to build the actuary profession in Indonesia.

Actuarial Short Course XI - Financial Engineering I

On April 12-15, 2019, the READI Project conducted a short course on “Financial Engineering I”. The training was the 11th of the series of short course held in collaboration with the University of Waterloo in which the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science faculty members have led the teaching on all short courses. Prof. Ken Seng Tan, PhD, ASA, CERA, and Sunlife Fellowship in International Actuarial Science, was the instructor of the 4 days intensive training program.

On March 12, 2019, Bill Duggan, the University of Waterloo’s READI Project Field Director, joined with Dr. Totok Prasetyo, Director of Institutional Development of Higher Education (Kemenristekdikti), Abdullah Mojadeddi, First Secretary of the Embassy of Canada and Prof. Djisman Simandjuntak, Rector, Prasetiya Mulya University, to open Indonesia’s first Co-operative Education Office at Prasetiya Mulya University.

On February 8, 2018, the READI project and the Canadian Association of International Development Professionals (CAIDP),  a non-profit corporation that was federally registered in February 1993 under the name Canadian Association of International Development Consultants (CAIDC) hosted a webinar titled, MicroInsurance in International Development.

On November 22-25, READI had the oppurtunity to attend the Hong Kong alumni events that took place in Central and Western Hong Kong.