Kampala to host first-ever All-Africa Pensions Summit, unlocking pension investment for Africa’s growth
Kampala, Uganda The capital city of Uganda, Kampala, is set to host the inaugural All‑Africa Pensions Summit (AAPS) from 5-7 November 2025. The summit will convene a wide array of pension fund executives, global investors, policymakers, development finance institutions and representatives from Africa’s social security systems.
The theme of the event, “Pension Funds – Powering Africa’s Growth,” reflects a bold pivot in the continent’s approach: leveraging its own domestic savings and pension assets to drive infrastructure, healthcare, education, affordable housing and other development priorities.
Key facts and objectives
The summit is organised by National Social Security Fund Uganda (NSSF) in collaboration with the Africa Social Security Association (ASSA).
Africa’s collective pension assets are estimated at around USD 700 billion. The summit will explore how these resources can be mobilised for domestic investment rather than being parked overseas.
Discussions will centre on how pension funds can help fill financing gaps in infrastructure, social services, and climate-resilient growth across Africa.
The locale: The summit will be held at the Speke Resort Convention Centre in Munyonyo, Kampala.
Why this matters
Africa’s pension funds have long been under-utilised in terms of domestic development. Many funds still invest abroad or in low-yield assets, while at home, there remains a significant infrastructure and social services deficit. This summit seeks to flip that dynamic by positioning pension-fund capital as a strategic engine for growth. By bringing together fund managers, institutional investors and government policymakers, the aim is to craft frameworks that encourage pension-fund investment into domestic priorities rather than capital flight.
For Uganda, hosting this summit signals its ambition to play a central role in Africa’s development finance architecture. It also opens opportunities for domestic pension funds to forge partnerships with multilateral and private investors and re-imagine how retirement savings can be deployed.
Key themes expected at the Summit
Domestic investment mobilisation: How to channel pension fund capital into national infrastructure, manufacturing, healthcare, housing and green projects.
Regulatory frameworks and governance: Ensuring pension funds have the right legal environment and governance structures to invest more broadly and responsibly.
Risk, return and asset-allocation strategies: How African pension funds can balance safety with growth, and access alternative asset classes such as real assets, infrastructure, private equity.
Youth, gender and inclusion: How to ensure pension fund investment supports equitable development and benefits women, youth and marginalised populations.
Climate resilience and sustainability: Aligning pension-fund investment with environmental and social governance (ESG) criteria and Africa’s growth agenda.
What to expect post-Summit
At the conclusion of the meeting, participants are expected to sign a final declaration outlining concrete next steps, partnerships and investment frameworks. The summit may also lead to the formation of task forces or working groups that will track progress in mobilising pension-fund assets for development.
“The summit is happening at the right time,” said NSSF Uganda Managing Director Patrick Ayota, emphasising the need to reposition Africa’s pension funds as key players in mobilising domestic resources.
By hosting the All-Africa Pensions Summit in Kampala, Uganda is at the heart of a growing movement to repurpose African savings for African growth. As the continent seeks to finance its own development, the summit offers a timely forum for rethinking the role of pension funds — not just as passive savers, but as catalysts of transformation and prosperity.
