'NSSF has not acquired a mall in Nigeria'

Oct 27, 2016

The head of marketing and communication at the fund said that the fund only invests in East Africa.

National Social Security Fund managing director, Richard Byarugaba.

The National Social Security Fund (NSSF) has distanced itself from reports that it has either bought or intends to acquire a mall in Nigeria to a tune of sh900b.

In a media statement, Barbara Teddy Arimi, the head of marketing and communication at the fund said that the fund only invests in East Africa.

"Section 68 (1) of the Uganda Retirement Benefits Regulatory Authority Act (2011) clearly spells out that the ‘funds of a retirement benefits scheme shall not be invested outside East Africa," she explained.

"We therefore wish to emphasize that the fund strictly acts within the law and abides by the URBRA Act, the URBRA investment guidelines, the NSSF Act and the NSSF investment policy."

At over sh5.8 trillion, NSSF is the largest pension scheme in East Africa by value and the largest financial institution in Uganda. That fund has a portfolio mix, from investing in government securities and buying into profitable firms across the region.

73 per cent of   NSSF's assets, about sh4.2 trillion is invested in fixed income assets like corporate bonds, treasury bills and fixed deposits.

NSSF wants to broaden this portfolio mix even further, by going into real estate, which is why the fund is banking on interests such as Temangalo, Nsimbe Estates, and Pensions Tower projects.

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