As the new David Ogong-led National Social Security Fund (NSSF) board continues to find its feet, experts say it has its work cut out with the provident fund still smarting from a string of maladministration allegations. NSSF will on Thursday hold its 12th Annual Members’ Meeting in which it is widely expected to announce a double-digit interest rate for the Financial Year (FY) 2023/24.

At a recent event in which the composition of the new NSSF board was announced, Labour minister Betty Amongi tasked it to adhere to corporate governance’s best practices. She also tasked the board to grow the Fund to at least Shs50 trillion. This is as NSSF members continue to push for an increment in the interest paid on the pool of savings that increased 19.2 percent compared to the previous year to reach Shs22.13 trillion.

Good returns

With the size of the Fund increasing, savers are angling for good returns. They are buoyed by the fact that the Funds’ financial results released in Kampala this past week show that earnings increased to Shs2.53 trillion from Shs2.2 trillion. The revenue growth reflects positive returns on both dividend and capital gain on equity investments spread across the region, especially in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda securities exchange counters.

In the regional debt market, the Fund managers say it has been stable with market participants reporting that long-term bond yields in the three major East African economies increased compared to last FY.

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