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‘Seeing students grow into actuaries gives me great satisfaction’

23 September 2021 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Supplied

Frans Koning recently obtained a CERA accredited enterprise risk management (ERM) qualification from the Actuarial Society of South Africa.

“If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail.”

“During and after planning, ensure that you identify all risks, since it would be the risks that you did not identify that might sink you.”

These are two of the beliefs of Frans Koning, Senior Lecturer and Head of the Department of Mathematical Statistics and Actuarial Science at the University of the Free State (UFS), whose outputs in life – whether as lecturer or risk manager – are about planning.

Koning, a qualified actuary with an interest in corporate governance, has been investing in his growth and development for the past three years by enrolling and obtaining an enterprise risk management (ERM) qualification from the Actuarial Society of South Africa, which is a member of the CERA Global Association (CGA). Having a Chartered Enterprise Risk Actuary (CERA) credential means that he worked through a world-class curriculum that is recognised globally and transferable internationally. This qualification gives professionals greater exposure to the C-suite and leadership, while empowering them to become a more highly valued resource for a company.

Pulling out all the stops

CGA describes itself as a body that provides accredited risk professionals with strong ERM knowledge to drive better business decisions in finance and insurance. It associates characteristics such as professionalism, ethics and trust, impeccable standards and integrity with students who have obtained the CERA credential. “These professionals can communicate ideas effectively with leadership and is qualified to play varying roles within an organisation, from risk manager to chief risk officer and more,” it states.

He had to pull out all the stops to obtain this qualification. “This was about 400 hours of study; and absolutely worth it. Since it was very interesting, I did not consider it hard work,” says Koning, who believes in a positive outlook on life. “I have never seen a successful pessimist,” he says.

This qualification enables him to add extra value in the classroom, teaching Risk Management. Discussing hard questions in class, linking it to practice, i.e., modelling COVID-19 and discussing its effect on life insurance, is what he loves about this profession. He misses student interaction in the classroom, saying that interaction and discussions are not the same with a Blackboard/Teams/Zoom meeting.

A multitude of opportunities

Koning, who has been with the university since 2003, believes his motivation of students makes a difference in their lives. “Teaching students and seeing them grow into actuaries and chief executive officers of companies gives me great satisfaction,” he states.

He lectures Life Contingencies, which is about calculating life insurance premiums and reserves, as well as Asset and Liability Management, which teaches students about managing the liabilities arising from selling insurance and managing the assets backing these.

Teaching students and seeing them grow into actuaries and chief executive officers of companies gives me great satisfaction. – Frans Koning

As an independent non-executive director (NED) at African Unity Life (Ltd), he also chairs the risk committee and serves as a member of the audit committee. Koning is of the opinion that this qualification will be useful in more board positions than NED. This is but one of his options. According to him, there are a multitude of opportunities in the private sector, as all entities manage risk.

“I also intend to do some research in the space of enterprise risk management, something which I enjoy,” he adds.

News Archive

Nanotechnology breakthrough at UFS

2010-08-19

Ph.D students, Chantel Swart and Ntsoaki Leeuw

Scientists at the University of the Free State (UFS) made an important breakthrough in the use of nanotechnology in medical and biological research. The UFS team’s research has been accepted for publication by the internationally accredited Canadian Journal of Microbiology.

The UFS study dissected yeast cells exposed to over-used cooking oil by peeling microscopically thin layers off the yeast cells through the use of nanotechnology.

The yeast cells were enlarged thousands of times to study what was going on inside the cells, whilst at the same time establishing the chemical elements the cells are composed of. This was done by making microscopically small surgical incisions into the cell walls.

This groundbreaking research opens up a host of new uses for nanotechnology, as it was the first study ever in which biological cells were surgically manipulated and at the same time elemental analysis performed through nanotechnology. According to Prof. Lodewyk Kock, head of the Division Lipid Biotechnology at the UFS, the study has far reaching implications for biological and medical research.

The research was the result of collaboration between the Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology, the Department of Physics (under the leadership of Prof. Hendrik Swart) and the Centre for Microscopy (under the leadership of Prof.Pieter van Wyk).

Two Ph.D. students, Chantel Swart and Ntsoaki Leeuw, overseen by professors Kock and Van Wyk, managed to successfully prepare yeast that was exposed to over-used cooking oil (used for deep frying of food) for this first ever method of nanotechnological research.

According to Prof. Kock, a single yeast cell is approximately 5 micrometres long. “A micrometre is one millionth of a metre – in laymen’s terms, even less than the diameter of a single hair – and completely invisible to the human eye.”

Through the use of nanotechnology, the chemical composition of the surface of the yeast cells could be established by making a surgical incision into the surface. The cells could be peeled off in layers of approximately three (3) nanometres at a time to establish the effect of the oil on the yeast cell’s composition. A nanometre is one thousandth of a micrometre.

Each cell was enlarged by between 40 000 and 50 000 times. This was done by using the Department of Physics’ PHI700 Scanning Auger Nanoprobe linked to a Scanning Electron Microscope and Argon-etching. Under the guidance of Prof. Swart, Mss. Swart en Leeuw could dissect the surfaces of yeast cells exposed to over-used cooking oil.

The study noted wart like outgrowths - some only a few nanometres in diameter – on the cell surfaces. Research concluded that these outgrowths were caused by the oil. The exposure to the oil also drastically hampered the growth of the yeast cells. (See figure 1)

Researchers worldwide have warned about the over-usage of cooking oil for deep frying of food, as it can be linked to the cause of diseases like cancer. The over-usage of cooking oil in the preparation of food is therefore strictly regulated by laws worldwide.

The UFS-research doesn’t only show that over-used cooking oil is harmful to micro-organisms like yeast, but also suggests how nanotechnology can be used in biological and medical research on, amongst others, cancer cells.

Figure 1. Yeast cells exposed to over-used cooking oil. Wart like protuberances/ outgrowths (WP) is clearly visible on the surfaces of the elongated yeast cells. With the use of nanotechnology, it is possible to peel off the warts – some with a diameter of only a few nanometres – in layers only a few nanometres thick. At the same time, the 3D-structure of the warts as well as its chemical composition can be established.

Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt@ufs.ac.za
18 August 2010

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