Dr Leslie Ndawana, Principal Executive Officer of the National Fund for Municipal Workers (NFMW)

As South Africa marks Youth Day on 16 June 2025, we reflect not only on the courage and the demand for justice by the young people of 1976, but on our collective responsibility to shape a better future for today’s youth. We sat down with Dr Leslie Ndawana, Principal Executive Officer of the National Fund for Municipal Workers (NFMW), to hear how the Fund is putting its 2025 theme Empower. Evolve. Excel. into practice through investments in education, wellness and economic opportunity.

EBnet: Dr Ndawana, why is Youth Day still so important today?

LN: Youth Day is a powerful reminder of what young people can achieve when they demand change. At NFMW, we take that legacy forward, not just with remembrance but through impactful investments. We believe every young person deserves access to quality education, decent work, and emotional support. That’s why our theme for 2025, Empower. Evolve. Excel., is so fitting. It is guiding everything we are doing this year (and beyond), from how we invest, to how we care for our members and their families.

EBnet: How does your pension fund understand and respond to the evolving needs and values of South Africa’s youth today, especially when compared to the youth of 1976 who were fighting for political freedom and access to education?

LN: The youth of 1976 fought with courage and clarity of purpose for political freedom and access to quality education – rights we now uphold and must continue to defend. Today’s youth, though no less determined, face more complex and fragmented struggles: systemic unemployment, economic exclusion, social injustice and a climate crisis.

At NFMW, we recognise that the modern youth agenda is deeply rooted in economic agency, dignity and sustainability. We respond by actively evolving our approach to financial inclusion, ensuring our services, investments, and communication methods resonate with the realities and aspirations of today’s young people. This includes enhancing transparency, simplifying our language and integrating platforms that are youth-accessible – both digitally and socially.

EBnet: What role do you believe financial security and long-term planning play in youth empowerment today compared to 1976?

LN: While the 1976 generation fought for the right to a future, today’s youth must secure that future economically. Financial security and long-term planning are now essential tools of empowerment – not luxuries. They are the modern equivalents of the demands made in 1976: tools that enable freedom of choice, dignity and intergenerational progress.

We believe pension funds are uniquely positioned to foster this empowerment by demystifying retirement saving, embedding financial education from an early age and promoting intergenerational solidarity – where today’s contributions secure tomorrow’s well-being.

EBnet: Do you think today’s youth see pension funds as relevant to their future, and if not, how can that perception be shifted?

LN: The reality is that many young people view pension funds as distant, bureaucratic or irrelevant – understandable, given the day-to-day pressures of economic survival. We take this perception seriously.

To shift this, NFMW is focusing on youth-centred engagement, education and technology. We are simplifying how we communicate, using relatable scenarios and elevating peer-to-peer learning through ambassadors and employer partnerships. Our goal is to reframe pensions as a tool of empowerment – not merely retirement, but resilience.

EBnet: How does your fund contribute to addressing systemic issues like unemployment, inequality, and access to financial tools?

LN: We see pension funds as catalysts of broader development. NFMW supports systemic and structural change through:

• Impact investments that support infrastructure, housing, renewable energy, among others.
• Capacity-building for municipal workers, often youth, via induction sessions and targeted outreach.
• Strategic partnerships to promote unclaimed benefits tracing, ensuring no rightful beneficiary—often from vulnerable communities—is left behind.

By supporting financial access and upskilling, we not only manage retirement savings but contribute to broader economic transformation.

EBnet: How does your pension fund educate or engage young people about the importance of long-term saving and financial planning in a world where many are focused on surviving day to day?

LN: We recognise the tension between daily survival and future planning. That’s why we integrate financial literacy into everything we do—from employer training, member education to social media, workshops  and wellness days.

Our educational campaigns are practical, hopeful and grounded in real-life stories. We focus on showing how small, consistent actions—like preserving your pension when changing jobs—can create lasting security. Importantly, we also listen to young and all voices, adapting our messaging and strategy to be more responsive to their lived realities.

EBnet: Looking ahead, how is your fund adapting its investment strategies to reflect the values and priorities of today’s youth – such as sustainability, social impact and ethical investing?

LN: NFMW is increasingly integrating sustainability and ethical considerations into our investment approach. This includes:

• Applying ESG screening criteria in asset selection.
• Supporting projects that address the nopoverty, good health, quality education, clean energy, economic growth and infrastucture SDGs.
• Promoting governance accountability and transparency within our investment managers.

Young people want their money to matter – and we take that responsibility seriously by ensuring our investment portfolio reflects values aligned with equity, impact and long-term stewardship.

EBnet: The Fund has shown remarkable growth recently. What’s driving this success?

LN: As of mid-2025, our assets under management increased to over R35 billion, with more than 60 000 members, making us the largest retirement fund in Local Government by membership. That’s up from R31.7 billion the previous year, including R3.2 billion in investment returns alone. Our investment strategy is diversified and designed not just for growth but for resilience and long-term impact.

EBnet: Let’s talk about education. What has the Fund achieved in this space?

LN: Education is where empowerment begins. We’ve invested R124 million, reaching over 2 450 learners and students across six institutions, including primary, secondary and tertiary levels. Most of these schools are based in rural, township, and peri-urban areas, where the need is greatest. Working with partners such as Old Mutual EduFund, Sanari, Summit PE and Futuregrowth, we are helping young people in Soshanguve, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, and Bloemfontein unlock their potential and excel in life.

EBnet: What other kinds of impact is being made?

LN: The results go far beyond education:

• 4 137 permanent jobs created or supported 77% held by previously disadvantaged individuals
• Over 40 000 households connected to fibre internet
• 283 hospital beds funded across multiple healthcare facilities
• Investments in mental health, fertility treatment and diagnostics, expanding health equity, and
• Reduction in social ills such as criminality and prostitution, in the long term

We also know that success is not just financial or academic; it is personal. This is why we have expanded our psycho-social wellness offerings to support our members and their families, especially the youth. Access to free counselling, emotional support, and financial education ensures that young people can navigate challenges with resilience. In this way, we help them evolve into confident, supported adults.

EBnet: What is your message to South Africans this Youth Day?

LN: Do not lose hope; take action. The youth of 1976 demanded a better future. At NFMW, we are doing our part: investing in schools, healthcare, technology, housing and wellness. To our members: your savings are safe, growing, and making a difference in the future we envision.

Let us continue to empower this generation. Let us help them evolve through opportunities and let us support them to excel because when the youth thrive, South Africa thrives.

EBnet: Final thoughts as you look to the year ahead?

LN: I’m deeply proud of what we’ve achieved and I’m even more excited about what lies ahead. Our 2025 theme Empower. Evolve. Excel. is more than a slogan. It’s our roadmap for meaningful progress. With the continued support from our members, staff, trustees, municiplalities and partners, I believe we are well on our way to building a stronger, equitable South Africa, one impactful investment at a time.

Young people today are not just future members — they are leaders, innovators and change agents in their own right. With their energy, ideas and courage, and with the continued support of our trustees, staff and partners, I believe we are well on our way to building a stronger, more equitable, South Africa – one that reflects the hopes of a rising generation and turns investment into impact.

ENDS