Investing in enterprise development to build future contributors
Investing in Hi-Innovator requires the Fund to commit patient capital, technical assistance and partnership capacity today to grow the contributors, employers, and savings base of the future. The programme responds to a structural challenge: most of Uganda’s employment is informal, while traditional compliance models cannot economically reach fragmented micro and small enterprises at scale.
During the year, the Fund advanced Hi-Innovator from proof of concept towards scale. The programme has trained 89,000 entrepreneurs, seed-funded 438 enterprises, sustained more than 202,000 jobs, generated 2,301 new mandatory members and mobilised UGX 2.54 billion in contributions. The next phase will embed compliance into enterprise finance through blended capital, debt-based support, technical assistance and partnerships with financial intermediaries, SACCOs, enterprise support organisations and development partners.
The trade-off is deliberate: NSSF accepts near-term financial risk, programme complexity and longer return horizons to support enterprise development, expand formalisation, strengthen remittance compliance, create jobs, and build the future membership base.
Trade-offs in our use of Financial, Human, Social & Relationship Capital
Long-term positive impact
- Broader contribution base through new active members, formalised enterprises, and stronger pathways into compliance.
- Stronger MSME capability through training, governance, bookkeeping, audit readiness, and technical assistance.
- Job creation and income growth, improving the ability of individuals and businesses to contribute consistently.
- Greater ecosystem partnerships across banks, MFIs, SACCOs, enterprise support organisations and development finance partners.
- Long-term shared value through expanded coverage, inclusive growth and a stronger future pipeline of future members and investment-ready businesses.
Short-term negative impact
- Longer return horizons and higher uncertainty than traditional investment or compliance-led approaches.
- Increased governance and monitoring requirements across intermediaries and enterprise support organisations.
- Ongoing remittance compliance challenges, requiring continued support, incentives and stronger links between finance and compliance.
- Dependence on blended capital and development partners, as well as legal pathways for instruments such as SAFE conversion.
- Delayed realisation of benefits as the enterprises progresses from training to formalisation, sustained remittance, and scale.
Contributing to the following SDGs
SDG 1 No Poverty
Supporting enterprise growth, income generation and job creation helps strengthen household financial resilience and economic security.
SDG 8 Decent Work and Economic Growth
Supporting entrepreneurship, job creation, enterprise growth, and pathways from informal to formal economic activity.
SDG 9 Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
Strengthening MSME capability and access to finance, technical assistance and business support to enable sustainable enterprise development.
SDG 17 Partnerships for the Goals
Building partnerships with financial institutions, SACCOs, enterprise support organisations and development partners to expand enterprise development and formalisation.
Material matters
Strategic risks
N/A