In this interview, we caught up with Darius Niwaha, General Manager of Octagon Uganda Limited a subsidiary of Octagon Africa, a leading financial services provider in retirement benefits training schemes, property management, and insurance brokerage services in Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia for both public and private sector organizations. Darius has grown with the organization since 2014 from being a pension administrator to a client relationship manager and currently the general manager since September 2019. He shares his experience with the Ugandan pension and insurance sector and the opportunities Ugandans can take advantage of.
Who is Darius Niwaha?
I have over eight years of experience in pension management and advisory services for both defined benefit and contribution schemes, Umbrella schemes and individual pension plans.
I have deep expertise in scheme strategic planning, core fundamentals of Trusteeship, and board management, and am well vast with retirement benefit regulations both internationally and regionally.
I am the force behind generating and retaining new businesses for the company, leading the company’s liaison with the clients, regulators, and other market players to meet the company’s business objectives.
Previously I worked with Citadel Capital as a business development manager and Tecno Brian Uganda Limited as a business process outsourcing executive.
I have a bachelor’s degree in Actuarial Science from Makerere University, certificate of financial mathematics from the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries and currently pursuing a financial analyst program with the Certified Financial Institute of UK under the LX program, and at the same time pursuing a master’s degree in business development and CFA level one candidate.
I’m very passionate about pension investment management and good governance of retirement benefits.
You are young yet have achieved so much already, take us through your career and how did you end up in the pension and insurance sector?
After university, I got an opportunity through an outsourcing company called Techno Brain Uganda limited where I was working with a fintech doing online data analysis. It was from there that I got an opportunity to work as the pension administrator at Octagon when it had just started. I am the kind of person who never gives up on any task, result-oriented, very reliable and God fearing. I strongly believe in teamwork, respect and Integrity. These are some of the attributes that propelled my professional growth to where I am today.
What are some of the trends and opportunities in the insurance and pension sector Ugandans can take advantage of?
Most employers in Uganda have created an opportunity for employees to save for their retirement. They are caring for their employees where they are saving over and above in NSSF. You find that organizations are putting the initiative to save for retirement for their different schemes and good enough, there is a regulator in place, Uganda Retirement Benefits Regulatory Authority that was enacted by the government in through URBRA ACT 2011 that protects the member’s benefit for both NSSF and occupational schemes. So, this allows individuals to save over and above what they’re saving for an NSSF to allow them to have a decent retirement package that they would use when they are no longer in employment.
Over the years, there has been the opportunity for more organizations to come on board like Octagon, to create different products that would enable members to save individually for those who are not attached to any organization. This has enabled those who don’t save with NSSF and are not affiliated with any organization to do individual saving thus having a retirement package that they would use when they no longer have the energy to work for themselves.
On the other hand, COVID-19 came as a blessing in disguise, it has taught people that you need to save because it’s the savings that will save you when in need.
Members received a wake-up call and they have started saving more for any eventuality because covid-19 has taught us that life can come to a stop. More people are starting to save and also taking up insurance policies because it’s only people who had insurance that had a second chance in life by utilizing the insurance cover which was there both medical and their business. People who had Insurance policies for their businesses were cushioned from risks brought about by covid.
It is very important to cushion yourself for the future by securing insurance cover, saving plans and investments.
According to the regulation, members saving in retirement schemes licensed by the Uganda Retirement Benefits Regulatory Authority (URBRA), will be allowed to secure mortgages and loans using 50% of their savings. What is your take on this?
It’s a great opportunity for members to utilize this regulation that has been put by the regulator, URBRA because when you look statistically, members who are working overtime upon retirement, the most pressing necessity that is required is shelter. Over the period, members often use whatever they have saved to construct. You find someone has saved 200m and is using it to build because they didn’t get the opportunity to do so during their work life.
This opportunity means someone can guarantee their fund because now you’ve saved up to a tune of some figure for both NSSF and occupational scheme or individually it can allow you to get to use part of that benefit as a guarantee. Getting a loan from the bank is tough without a guarantee, with this, members can use their benefits as guaranteed security against the loan.
The mortgage allows you to have a house and at the same time receive your benefits upon retirement.
So, this presents a great opportunity to Members, I would encourage Members now to start saving and build a portfolio that can be presented to the bank and get the House of your dreams.
Why do most hardworking Ugandans end up with nothing after retirement and how can we change this narrative?
This is a challenge not only in Uganda but Africa-wide. We have a poor saving culture; people live for now without care for the future. This has created a big problem as people don’t save for either their families or themselves. To be ready for tomorrow, you need to build wealth today.
As Octagon, we are currently extending financial literacy skills and knowledge to our communities. We began by running a financial literacy program for children between 10 – 20 years on the basics of saving, investing and wealth creation.
We are also creating products that will enable members to save and extending of our knowledge, in terms of financial literacy to the members.
Do you have any parting words before we close the interview?
I encourage Ugandans to start planning now when they still have the energy to work for both families and themselves so that there are no regrets in the future.
Make investments that will enable you to earn a regular income, and secure health insurance cover and insurance policy to enable you to sustain the education of your children.
At Octagon, we have products like Octagon PensionPlus, Octagon Post-Retirement Medical Fund, Octagon Conservative (Dollar) Fund which can be used as saving plans for your future.
These will position you to continue earning and get the same medical services because we all know that the cost of living in Uganda is very high but if you have that insurance cover then you and your family are able to receive continue receiving medical services at a relatively cheaper cost.
