Dear Members and Pensioners,

We hope you enjoyed the festive season and wish you a prosperous 2020.

You may have seen media reports about the EPPF's pension administration. These reports are inaccurate, and we would like to provide you with the correct information and background to the Fund's current actions regarding its pension administration system.

The Fund employs an external service provider to deliver a technology platform which enables the Fund to administer member pensions and benefits. This provider is appointed through a tender process and their services are procured for a specified period. The contract with the existing service provider will end in April 2020.

In light of the expiring contract and with a focus on modernising its member administration system, the Fund issued a Request For Proposals to the market. The process was undertaken with the aim of improving the processing of benefits, enhancing controls, reducing costs, and providing a better service experience to you, the member. A procurement process was followed to assess the capabilities of available systems in the market in order to identify one that would suit the Fund's requirements.

On conclusion of the procurement process, a service provider was selected having considered capabilities, functionality and price. We are currently at an implementation stage and are doing our best to ensure that the new system is in place before the expiry of the current contract.

The nature of the EPPF's operations requires systems and technology service providers that are able to continuously cope with developments and innovation. Data quality is the foundation of reliable benefit processing, accurate valuations and audits. Our current processes address these requirements adequately. This is evidenced by the independent actuarial reports and appraisals that are produced annually, the latest of which indicates that the Fund remains healthy, despite a challenging investment climate.

The Board and management continue to take care when making decisions, to ensure that the Fund is able to honour its obligations to members and pensioners well into the future. The Fund has confidence in the integrity and professionalism of its management and employees.

We hope that this allays any concerns and reassures you that the Fund is in good hands.

Should you have any further concerns, please contact the Head of Risk & Compliance, Ayanda Gaqa.