The Dutch Pension Federation (Pensioenfederatie) has called on the Dutch government to implement the recommendations in the Wennink report, including embracing public-private financing systems and the creation of a national investment institution.

The Wennink report was published on 12 December 2025 by former ASML chief executive, Peter Wennink, after being commissioned by the Dutch government in September to provide independent advice on strengthening the Netherlands’ future earning capacity and economic competitiveness.

The report, titled De route naar toekomstige welvaart (The Road to Future Prosperity), set out several recommendations aimed at boosting productivity, investment and structural growth, including calls for significant targeted investments, clearer government-business collaboration, and reforms to regulatory, labour-market and innovation frameworks, to ensure the Netherlands can sustain public services and economic prosperity in the decades ahead.

Pensioenfederatie chairman, Ger Jaarsma, said the report contains “important starting points” to further strengthen the Dutch investment climate.

In particular, he welcomed the report’s views on public-private financing, something that the federation has previously called upon the government to explore further. He stated that pension funds contribute to social challenges, provided they are profitable and fit within a fund’s investment policy.

“The government must provide clear guidance on how to deal with future technologies and the role of institutional investors in this. A certain scale and programmatic approach are necessary in this regard. Pension funds would like to see the government embrace public-private financing systems more and, where necessary, cover the unprofitable peaks. It is good that this is explicitly mentioned in the report,” Jaarsma said.

Indeed, the report stated that “large amounts of private capital must be mobilised” to boost investment in the Netherlands. It said that to ensure investors, such as pension funds, can fulfil their role, “more investable propositions are needed first and foremost”.

The report also highlighted how Dutch pension funds invest considerably less in Dutch (€23bn) and European companies (€97bn) than in American companies (€293bn).

“The American market is now four times larger than the European market and also substantially more profitable. The average return on American investments over the past five years was 14 per cent, compared to only 7 per cent in Europe.

“Given the scale and returns of the American market compared to the Dutch market, it is not surprising that pension funds – which want to contribute to social challenges in the Netherlands, but also have a responsibility towards their participants – invest more in the US,” the report stated.

Therefore, it said that in order to make Dutch investments more attractive to pension funds and other investors, it is “essential” that their investments yield sufficient returns. To do this, the report said, the right preconditions must be created in terms of regulation, talent, energy and infrastructure.

“Good preconditions will enable large-scale investments to take place again and generate returns. If investment funds, including the €1,600bn held by pension funds, are unable to find sufficiently profitable investments in the Netherlands, this is more than just a missed opportunity.

“Without sufficient investment, structural growth of at least 1.5 per cent to 2 per cent will be out of reach and earning capacity will leak away to other countries,” the report warned.

On this, Jaarsma agreed, as he said that only with stable, long-term policy and scope for long-term investments can pension funds further intensify their investments in the Netherlands.

One way of achieving this ambition, the report found, is the creation of a national investment institution to “activate Dutch institutional investors and banks, as well as attract European funds and guarantees”.

“This will make investment projects scalable, affordable and competitive,” the report said.

Jaarsma, who advocated for the creation of a national investment institution in 2024, again urged The Hague to implement the proposal.

“This could stimulate more impactful investments by institutional investors, such as pension funds, enabling the Netherlands to become more sustainable, innovative and contribute to the economy and earning capacity of the future more quickly,” he said.

The federation is not the only supporter of such an institution, as the five largest pension funds in the Netherlands - ABP, PMT, bpfBouw, PME, and PFZW – have also previously called for its creation.

The funds emphasised that by collaborating with the government, they can “achieve long-term stable returns and make an important contribution to the necessary energy transition”.

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