Prudential Uganda has launched three financial protection and savings products aimed at helping Ugandan families plan for children’s education, build long-term wealth, and protect their financial plans against unexpected life events.
The products (Pru Edusave Plus, Pru Wealth, and Pru Legacy) are designed around three areas of household financial planning: education, wealth creation, and protection for dependants.
Speaking at the launch, Prudential Uganda Chief Executive Officer Tetteh Ayitevie said the products were developed from the company’s experience serving customers in Uganda over the past decade.
“People work hard for their money, but by the time the salary ends in the account, it already has a destination. Behind those monetary decisions are always people and the goals that matter to them,” Ayitevie said.
He said financial products should help households move beyond simply earning and spending money towards deliberately planning for major future obligations. “For Ugandan families, some of the most important decisions are how we plan our children’s education, how we build wealth, how we protect the families that we love and, most importantly, what we leave behind if anything happens to us,” he said.
Officials said Pru Edusave Plus allows parents and guardians to save towards a child’s education over a period of between five and 15 years. According to Prudential Uganda, customers can contribute from Shs150,000 a month, with quarterly, half-yearly, and annual payment options also available.
Unlike conventional education savings arrangements that may provide a lump sum at the end of a term, the product allows benefits to be paid in instalments aligned with different stages of a child’s education.
Prudential Uganda Chief Operations Officer Brenda Nagudi said the product was developed around the reality that education expenses arise at different stages of a child’s development. “In Uganda, the education journey is not one event. We have nursery, primary, secondary and university, and each stage comes with financial requirements. What we are doing with Pru Edusave Plus is allowing a parent or guardian to plan for those different milestones instead of waiting until the need arises,” Nagudi said.
The product also incorporates protection if the policyholder dies or becomes totally and permanently disabled. Under the stated product terms, an immediate benefit equivalent to 20% of the sum assured, capped at Shs10 million, is payable in the event of death or total and permanent disability. An annual income benefit equivalent to 20% of the sum assured, also capped at Shs10 million, is then payable on each policy anniversary for the remainder of the policy term. Prudential said future premiums are waived in the qualifying circumstances, with the policy remaining in force until maturity.
Pru Wealth is aimed at customers saving towards longer-term financial objectives, including business capital, home ownership, education, and other major financial needs. The product has a minimum term of eight years and a maximum term of 15 years, while the minimum premium is Shs250,000. Customers can make monthly, quarterly, half-yearly, or annual payments.
Nagudi said the product was designed to respond to the fact that households often have several competing financial ambitions. “These are needs that can require significant amounts of money, and Pru Wealth gives customers a structured way of planning towards an agreed amount over a defined period,” she said.
The third product, Pru Legacy, is focused on financial protection and legacy planning. Prudential Uganda Chief Commercial Officer Felicia Manuela Quarshie said the product addresses a financial risk that is sometimes overlooked—the impact of serious illness on people who are still alive and have families depending on their income.
“We often talk about what happens to our families when we are gone. But there is another financial risk we need to talk about: what happens when you are still here, still have a family depending on you and still have financial commitments, but suddenly face a serious illness?” Quarshie said.
Under the product, customers build towards an agreed financial goal while receiving protection against specified events during the policy term. For natural death during the plan, Prudential says 100% of the guaranteed sum assured is paid to beneficiaries, alongside a 10% annual family income benefit. The product also provides an accidental death benefit of 200% of the applicable cover.
An optional critical illness benefit is designed to provide 50% of the customer’s cover upfront when the applicable conditions are met. “That money becomes available at a time when the customer needs to focus on treatment and recovery, but also needs to keep the household financially stable,” Quarshie said.
Pru Legacy is distributed exclusively through Prudential Uganda’s bank partners. According to Quarshie, the bank distribution model was intended to bring insurance discussions closer to other financial decisions made by customers.
“People already use their banking relationships to make important decisions around income, savings, investments, mortgages, businesses and assets. We believe protection belongs in that same conversation,” she said.
Ayitevie said Prudential had served more than 200,000 customers over the past decade and that the experience had informed the development of the new products. “The products we are putting out there are born out of the lessons we have learned from serving Ugandan customers. We want to make sure that the financial instruments we provide are relevant to the needs people actually face,” he said.
The company said its products are intended to complement, rather than replace, other forms of saving and investment and encouraged customers to consider their financial needs, affordability, and policy terms before taking up cover.
