Pension Fund Managers have been advised to diversify investments in government bonds to offshore instruments as a measure to safeguard pension funds from near-term economic shocks.
According to the Chief Executive of Axis Pension Trust, Afriyie Oware, the country’s pension scheme has been weakened by the recent Domestic Debt Exchange Programme which is worrying.
He was addressing stakeholders at this year’s Pension Strategy Conference in Accra under the theme “Building resilient pension portfolios”.
Oware suggested a minimum of 20% offshore investments needed to save the industry.
Our current predicament highlights a critical lesson: the need for a strategic shift in how we allocate pension fund capital. Our preference for government bonds has not only fueled economic inefficiency but also stymied private sector growth—the very engine of wealth creation”.
“With only 12% of our national savings invested in productive private sector, the path forward is clear. We must direct more investments into the productive private sector”, he charged.
According to him, the over-exposure of pension funds to government bonds will pose a danger to beneficiaries of such funds.
The urgency of diversifying our investments away from government bonds cannot be overstated. As we face the prospect of an economic after-shock in the near term, we must act decisively to hedge the purchasing power of our contributors”, he noted.
He therefore called for a collaborative effort to advocate for policy reforms that ensure a sustainable and resilient economic environment that will secure the retirement outcomes of Ghanaian workers.