NSSF’s Airtel shares yield Shs 42.6bn dividend

What the report says

The National Social Security Fund (NSSF) has received Shs 42.6 billion in dividends from its shareholding in Airtel Uganda for the 2025 financial year, according to The Observer. The handover was made by Airtel Uganda managing director Sumendra Sahu, who also praised NSSF’s record 22.53 per cent interest rate for members in the 2025/26 financial year, which the fund said was worth about Shs 5.44 trillion.

NSSF managing director Patrick Ayota said the telecom investment has been one of the fund’s strongest holdings since NSSF bought about 4.21 billion Airtel Uganda shares when the company listed on the Uganda Securities Exchange in 2023. He said the latest payout lifts cumulative dividends from Airtel to Shs 82.3 billion, after earlier payments of Shs 8 billion at listing and Shs 31.7 billion for 2024. NSSF said its stake is about 10.6 per cent and is held on behalf of its 2.6 million members.

Ayota linked the strong return to NSSF’s broader investment strategy, saying the fund spreads assets across fixed income, equities and real estate, and across several East African markets and sectors. The fund also said its assets under management rose to Shs 32.8 trillion by the end of June, up from Shs 26 trillion a year earlier, and that it is targeting Shs 80 trillion by 2035.

Separately, Airtel said it had launched satellite-powered mobile connectivity through a Starlink partnership, which it says could improve coverage in hard-to-reach areas such as national parks, mountains and islands. The development matters because it highlights both the performance of NSSF’s equity investments and ongoing telecom expansion in Uganda.