Members' funds are invested in a diverse pool of investments that aims to deliver optimum risk-adjusted returns over the medium and long term. Guided by an Investment Strategy that is informed by a Strategic Asset Allocation (SAA), we invest in businesses and assets in certain segments of the local economy and across global markets.

Our strategic approach to investments has contributed to Nambawan Super's (or the Fund's) success over the years resulting in making us the largest Superannuation Fund in PNG at present with close to K10 billion in assets under management. The Fund has a proven track record in investing Members' funds locally which have grown over the years to benefit our Members through investment returns as well as helping to grow the local economy.

*Over the last 10 years, NSL has delivered an average interest rate of over 6%, which is above the average Consumer Price Index for that same period. Since the Superannuation Reforms in 2000, NSL has delivered an average interest rate of 10% over the last 23 years
**2014 - 2023

Why this matters

We have a strategic approach to investment and are constantly considering what changes we should be making to our investment mix to ensure strong long-term returns for Members. As Member contributions are received, the Fund must decide how and where to invest those funds to ensure long-term real returns for Members.

The Investment Objective of the Fund is to achieve a return after expenses and taxation, but before reserves allocation (if any), of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) plus 2% over the medium-term. The Fund aims to achieve this objective with a reasonable degree of certainty, by requiring the expected probability of a negative return to be not more than one year in five.

To that effect, the Fund has developed an Investment Strategy that guides our efforts and outlines our “compass”, through the SAA. The SAA is regularly reviewed, including the target asset allocations, prospective returns, associated risks, and the liquidity requirements of the Fund’s investment portfolio against its liability profile.

How we create value

In pursuing our objectives, NSL continues to invest in a range of assets locally, which provide broader benefits to PNG by supporting local companies, building much needed infrastructure, and creating jobs.

A great proportion of Member funds are invested in well-known brands in PNG such as BSP Financial Group Limited, Westpac Bank, Credit Corporation, Kumul Hotels (which utilises the 'Holiday Inn' Brand in Papua New Guinea), Toyota Tsusho, City Pharmacy, SP Brewery, and Paradise Company which make EmNau biscuits, Queen Emma chocolate and Gala ice cream. Not only are our Members getting good returns from our investment in these businesses, they are also proud part-owners of major PNG companies and organisations that continue to provide local jobs and are main-stays and drivers of the local economy.

Nambawan Super puts Members' interests first and advocates for their funds to be managed in an independent and professional environment. We do not invest in businesses that run against the best interests of PNG and ultimately our Members. We pride ourselves on our integrity and trustworthiness, and our governance and accountability processes that preserve and grow Members' funds for their retirement benefit.

Investment Diversification

We invest our Members' savings in a diversified range of investments. This approach may be best described and understood as “not putting all your eggs in one basket”. The aim is to mitigate the likely negative impact on a Member’s retirement funds from an investment that might perform poorly while other assets in the portfolio might be doing well during the same period. Members' retirement savings are invested in Government bonds, commercial and residential property, and local and international companies. Over the past decade, we have also patiently built up our offshore investments, which enables us to access a much wider range of investments not otherwise available in PNG.

Locally-based

We employ a local team of investment professionals and are able to draw upon international expertise when required. Our people are also continually improving their skills and expertise, often through internationally recognised institutions. We aspire to operate at the standards expected internationally, while always being mindful that engagement with local businesses requires an understanding of the local economy.

Legislation

The legislation governing the superannuation industry in PNG is the Superannuation (General Provision) Act 2000 (the Act). The Bank of Papua New Guinea (BPNG), is our regulator according to the Act, and supervises the activities of Nambawan Super to ensure the rights and interests of our Members remain protected. BPNG does this by issuing Prudential Standards that reinforce the provisions of the Act and supervises both NSL and our Licensed Investment Manager (LIM), Kina Funds Management Limited (KFM), through regular reviews and comprehensive reporting.

Nambawan Super in consultation with Kina Funds Management (KFM), works within the framework of these regulatory settings to ensure targeted returns can be achieved in the medium to long-term without taking excessive investment risks, as envisioned in our Investment Strategy and SAA.

Investment Strategy

The Fund’s primary purpose is to preserve and maximise the superannuation benefits of its Members through prudent investment management. The principal objective of the Fund is to provide a return after fees and taxes above CPI plus 2% over the medium-term.

The Fund’s investment strategy guides the investment decisions of NSL and is subject to regular review to ensure it remains appropriate and relevant to our investment objective, risk tolerance and liability profile of the Fund, which are constantly evolving.

This Investment Strategy documents the Fund’s SAA, which sets out the target allocations to certain classes of investment assets. In determining the SAA, the Trustee Board considers:

  • The risks involved in making and holding an investment under each of the different categories;
  • Possible investment baskets or asset classes;
  • The likely returns from each asset class, including the distribution of returns on each asset class, knowing that investment returns (especially for riskier investments such as equities and property) are not the same each year, and may indeed be negative in certain periods;
  • The distribution of returns on the portfolio as a whole, taking into account the diversification of the Fund’s assets, to ensure adequate risk mitigation;
  • How liquid each investment is and the liquidity of the portfolio as a whole; and
  • The Fund’s cash flow requirements in line with its liability profile and liquidity characteristics of its assets.

Investing for the long-term

Superannuation is a long-term investment and rewards consistent savings accrued over the long-term. Nambawan Super follows international best practices and has a disciplined investment approach that is designed to withstand some of the headwinds in a constantly evolving global and local investment environment and protect investment returns for our Members.

Members who patiently save a portion of their wages through superannuation, benefit in the long-term through the effects of compounded returns generated from their savings. In a typical Superannuation savings scheme, it is commonly observed that interest earned and paid to a Member’s account would exceed their annual cash contributions in the latter part of their working lives as their savings balances grow.

We constantly think about what might happen and how tough periods impact our Members. The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2019 and its effects on many aspects of life very quickly changed the outlook for the world economy and for PNG. These unexpected events remind us that despite our best efforts, we cannot predict the future. The Trustee Board, therefore, considers contingency plans and takes a long-term view when investing Members’ savings.

Superannuation is long-term and the Fund’s Investment Strategy includes a long-term focus to increase the Fund’s investments in offshore assets, which will enable better diversification than if restricted to just PNG assets. This will also enable the Fund to invest in assets that are much more readily sold and converted into another asset, or cash, or even converted back to PNG Kina if larger-than-anticipated Member retirements require more cash to be paid out.

The Trustee Board has in place a sensible Investment Strategy, focused on maximizing returns whilst balancing risk, and at the same time ensuring enough cash will be on hand to pay Members as they retire and exit the Fund.

Brands we invest in:

BSP
Westpac
Toyota
SP
PFL
Credit Corporation
IHG
Gala
CPL Group
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Portfolio composition by asset class

Our investments are currently held in the following different asset classes:

Asset classes Target allocation View details
Domestic Cash 1%  
Domestic Bonds - Short-Term 13%  
Domestic Bonds - Long-Term 24%  
Domestic Listed Equity 10%
Domestic Unlisted Equity 15%
Domestic Property 17%
Domestic total 80%
International Listed Equity 20%
International total 20%
Total 100%
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Domestic Listed Equity

The Fund's domestic listed equities allocation comprises of shares in companies that are listed on PNG National Stock Exchange (PNGX). As at 31 December 2023, The Fund's exposure to domestic listed equities includes the following companies.

Listed equities Stock exchange Code Industry/Sector
BSP Financial Group Limited* PNGX & ASX BSP Banking and Finance
Credit Corporation Limited PNGX CCP Finance, Property and Investments
City Pharmacy Limited PNGX CPL Health and Retail

*BSP is a dual listed company (PNGX & ASX). Nambawan Super has holdings of their stock on both stock exchanges.

Domestic Unlisted Equity

The Fund's holdings in domestic unlisted (excluding property holding companies) equities are listed in the following table.

Ordinary Shares in Unlisted Equities Sector/Industry
Gazelle International Hotel Limited Hotel
Kumul Hotels Limited Hotel
Paradise Company Limited Consumer Staples/Food and Beverage
PNG Water Limited Utilities
Post Courier Limited Communication Services/Media
South Pacific Brewery Limited Consumer Staples/Alcoholic Beverages
Toyota Tsusho (PNG) Limited T/A Ela Motors Consumer Discretionary/Automobiles & Components
Westpac (PNG) Limited Banking and Finance

NSL is a shareholder of the following property holding companies listed in the following table

Property Holding Company Location Description
OPH Limited

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

Holding company that owns the new Deloitte Haus, APEX Penthouse Apartments, and the Crown Plaza Residence in Down Town, Port Moresby.
Waigani Asset Limited

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

Holding company that owns two commercial properties, Treasury Haus and Eda Tano building in Waigani, Port Moresby.
Rangeview Heights Limited

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

Holding company that owns a mixed-use commercial and residential property on 6,009 sqm of land situated between NCDC City Hall and Savannah Heights along Waigani Drive, opposite Vision City, Port Moresby.
Moki No. 10 Limited

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

Holding company that owns the newly completed Moki Business Park situated between TISA Haus and Telikom Rumana along Kumul Ave, Waigani office area, Port Moresby.
Coastwatchers Court Ltd (S25 L37)

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

Holding company that owns 31 apartments
at Touaguba Hill, Port Moresby.
Morobe Fronts Holdings Ltd (S27,
L47)
Lae, Morobe Province Holding company that owns the Lae
Waterfront Land.

Domestic Property

The Fund owns a portfolio of mixed commercial, residential, and industrial properties as well as unimproved land in the domestic market.

In 2023, construction work was completed for Moki Business Park. Later in the 2023, Pacific Palms Property was appointed as the property facilities manager for Port Moresby properties. Professional Real Estate Lae was also appointed as the facilities manager for Lae properties.

The following tables detail the individual properties directly owned by Nambawan Super.

Commercial Properties    
Properties Location Description
Aopi Centre (S390 L12,13 & 14 Waigani Drive)

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

A six-level Twin Tower Office Complex on Waigani Drive. Currently leased to the Departments of Health, and High Education, NSL Members Service, and others.
Morobe Haus (Vele Rumana)
(S6 L19 & 20 4th Street, Top Town)
Lae Six-level commercial office complex in the central business district (CBD), Lae, Morobe Province. Recently refurbished.

Nambawan Super Haus

(IPI Building)

Lae Seven-level mixed use commercial/residential complex in the CBD of Lae, Morobe Province.
Revenue Haus (S20 L11 Champion Parade)

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

Nine-level commercial office complex in the CBD, Port Moresby. Leased to the Internal Revenue Commission.
Port Tower (Shirn Haus)
(S3 L21 Hunter Street)

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

Nine-level mixed-use commercial/residential complex in the CBD, Down Town, Port Moresby.
Vulupindi Haus (S405 L15 Waigani Drive)

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

Six-level commercial office complex in Waigani. Leased to the Education Department.
Industrial Properties    
Properties Location Description
Warehouse Gordons (S17 and L64)

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

NSL Storage Warehouse.
Residential Properties    
Properties Location Description
Bayside Apartments (Portion 178)

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

42 x 2 & 3 bedroom residential units located at Koki.
Portion 212 (Portion 212, Boundary Road) Lae, Morobe Province 40 x 2 & 3 bedroom residential units in Lae, Boundary Road.
Pinnacle Apartments (S63 L22, Daugo Drive)

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

Residential Apartment with eight levels containing 11 apartments and a penthouse apartment at Touaguba Hill.
Koki Staff Housing Compound (Portion 176)

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

Staff Housing.
Vacant Lands    
Properties Location Description
9-mile land (Portion 2156, 2157 & 2159)

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

The properties are located on L1 S5, Banz, L1 S6, Banz and L2, 3 & 5 S6. Vacant undeveloped land.
Ex-Angco (L1 S6, L2, 3 & 5 S6 and L1 S5)**

Banz, Western Highlands Province

The properties are located on L1 S5, Banz, L1 S6, Banz and L2, 3 & 5 S6. Vacant undeveloped land.
Ex-Post PNG (S387 L20)

Port Moresby,

National Capital District

Vacant undeveloped land at 4-mile next to the Telikom
Training Centre.

**Sold during 2023

International Listed Equity

The Fund’s international equities have been invested in a
number of equity funds, with a mix of passive and active
strategies. These managed funds are listed below.

Managed Fund Industry/Sector
Blackrock Wholesale Indexed International Equity Fund Global Equity Funds ex-Australia
Amundi Funds - Polen Capital Global Growth (USD) Global Equity Funds
Schroder International Selection Fund - Global Equity (USD) Global Equity Funds
Schroder International Selection Fund - EM Asia (USD) Emerging Market Fund
Lyxor Core MSCI World (DR) UCITS ETF Global Equity Funds
HSBC MSCI World ETF Global Equity Funds
Goldman Sachs EM EQ Fund (USD) Emerging Market Fund
Acadian Global Managed Volatility Equity Fund Global Managed Volatility Fund
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