Overview:
In addition to growth in its revenue, the Fund had a better year across other key performance indicators, including growth in assets under management, contributions collected, benefits paid, and cost management.
The National Social Security Fund (NSSF) has announced that its earnings increased by 16% from Ugx 2.2 trillion to Ugx 2.53 trillion for the Financial Year ended June 30, 2024.
Addressing the media at the NSSF Annual Media Roundtable, NSSF Managing Director Patrick Ayota attributed the growth to an increase in interest income earnings, dividend income as well as real estate income.
“Income from all three asset classes we invest in increased this last financial year compared to the previous one. Interest income increased from UGX 2 trillion to UGX 2.34 trillion, dividend income from our listed and unlisted equities increased from UGX145.1billion to UGX175 billion and income from our real estate investments also increased from UGX11.9 billion to UGX 13.3 billion,” Ayota said.
He added that the Fund’s performance mirrors an improvement in the overall investment environment in Uganda and across East Africa.
“Our analysis shows that although it was not without challenges, across East Africa, it was a better year compared to the Financial Year 2022/2023. The Ugandan economy recovered and recorded a 6% growth in GDP, inflation remained under control, regional stock markets recovered and the interest rates slightly increased,” he said.
In addition to growth in its revenue, the Fund had a better year across other key performance indicators, including growth in assets under management, contributions collected, benefits paid, and cost management.
“During the year, we recorded a milestone in asset growth, achieving our target of growing the Fund to UGX 20 trillion by 2025 more than a year in advance. Our assets under management as of the end of June 2024 stood at UGX22.13 trillion, an increase of 19.2% compared to the previous year. We still hold our top position as the largest Fund by value in East Africa,” Ayota said.
The Fund’s member contributions increased by 12.2% from Ugx1.72 trillion in the Financial Year 2022/23 to Ugx 1.93 trillion in the Financial Year 2023/24 and the cost of administration dropped from 1.02 to 1.00% of total assets,” he added.
Unlike the previous year, however, the amount of money paid in benefits reduced from UGX 1.199 trillion in the Financial Year 2022/23 to UGX1.120 trillion in the Financial Year 2023/24.
Ayota explained that the reduction was driven by a drop in the number of people who claimed benefits from 48,115 in the Financial Year 2022/23 to 44,250 in the Financial Year 2023/24. For instance, the mid-term benefit payments dropped from Ugx272.2 billion to Ugx176.6 billion.
“People who qualify to withdraw their savings are opting not to because they trust the Fund to not only ensure safety but also growth in value of their money. This is a responsibility we do not take for granted,” Ayota added.
He added that the Fund has embarked on Vision 2035 which includes growing the Fund to UGX 50trillion, extending social security coverage to 50% of Uganda’s working population, and ensuring service levels satisfaction of 95%, all by 2035.