RAND WATER PROVIDENT FUND ANNUAL REPORT 2022-2023

Principal Officer’s Review

Dr V Mello Chairperson of the Board

The local economy experienced loadshedding intensity throughout the financial year from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023, despite cold winter weather. It appears the extreme pessimism, including fears of further loadshedding stages or even complete grid collapse, were exaggerated. In reality, the economy has shown to be more resilient than expected. This is not to suggest that the worst is over, just that the economy is not collapsing. There is no doubt that consumers are feeling the squeeze, and despite all the focus on the negative economic impact of loadshedding, consumer spending remains the largest component of the domestic economy and it is vital to understand the health of household finances. Following a 13-month breach, headline inflation eased back into the 3-6% target range in June 2023, and dropped to just above the target midpoint in August. Core inflation, however, remains high relative to the pre-pandemic Ms MS Nyembe Principal Officer

Ms MS Nyembe Principal Officer

trend and risks to both headline and core inflation are elevated. The South African economy is now forecast to grow by 0.7% in 2023 due to stronger than expected investment and continued spending. Our aspirations and our goals in the work we do for our members, alongside our partners, are defined in our purpose: to meet our members’ retirement needs. Our objective of the retirement fund is to provide members with an adequate retirement benefit and to provide benefits to dependants upon the death of a member. In doing so, the fund wishes to be effective, impactful and to create value now and into the future. Our approach to everything we do is rooted in our values-driven culture and our commitment to being an engaged and thoughtful corporate citizen that cares deeply for the wellbeing of our members, our industry, and our society. Rand Water Provident Fund has a fiduciary duty to act in the best interest of its members whose benefits depend on the responsible management of fund assets. This duty supports the adoption of a responsible investment approach to deploying capital into markets that will earn adequate risk adjusted returns suitable for the fund’s specific member profile, liquidity needs and liabilities. Prudent investing should consider any factor which may materially affect the sustainable long-term performance of a fund’s assets, including factors of an environmental, social and governance character. ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND GOVERNANCE (ESG) FACTORS Environmental, social and governance (ESG) forms an integral part of Rand Water Provident Fund’s investment strategy. • The Fund is socially conscious of the impact of investments to the South African communities at large. • The Fund also considers good stewardship of nature and the impact of investments to the environmental. • The Fund considers the influence of investments to the generally accepted principles of good governance. Mr ML Ncobela Funding Manager

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