The pensions committee at the Cambridgeshire County Council has approved a new 5% allocation to emerging markets equity.

The £1.64bn ($2.58bn) UK pension fund decided to transfer 5% from its existing equity allocation, from mainly UK equities, to a specific emerging markets mandate. The move is an effort to boost returns for the pension.

With the change the new approach is expected to yield long-term returns of 9 -13%, which is in line with the fund’s equity expectations. The 5% allocation will amount to around £80m in assets to invest in emerging markets equity managers.

The committee also agreed to double the pension fund’s private equity/ infrastructure allocation to 10% of the portfolio and create a 5% opportunistic portfolio for specific tactical investment opportunities.