LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT & CEO

In the five weeks since we reported our 2020 financial results, I have been thinking a great deal about the concept of resilience and what it truly means. The Plan’s loss of -2.7% last year fell well short of your hopes and expectations, and as OMERS new President and CEO, I fully admit that I feel the same way. OMERS got hit hard by the global pandemic and its knock-on effects to the economy and our portfolio. However, I want you to know that we will not allow a single-year loss to define us.

We invest for the long term, and in its nearly 60-year history, this Plan has adapted, rebounded and fought back during times of financial and economic turbulence. Our entire team is more dedicated than perhaps ever before to delivering on the pension promise. Further, we are fully focused on looking forward in order to do our level best to regain the lost ground from this setback – and bolster your trust and confidence over time. That is what I mean by resilience. And knowing our global team extraordinarily well gives me the confidence and conviction to make that commitment to you.

Since the announcement, we have been actively engaged in listening and responding to those of you who have reached out to better understand our results and to ask some very valid questions. We have been providing insight into how our investment portfolio was impacted, or underperformed, last year, and outlining our plan to set OMERS up for success in the future. In that context, I invite any OMERS member interested in hearing more to attend our virtual Annual Meeting on April 6. You can register at omers.com.

In the meantime, I would like to leave you with three messages:

1. The fundamentals of our 2025 Investment Strategy remain intact and in the long-term interest of OMERS, and yet we are being agile, learning from these times and making shifts to take advantage of tomorrow’s key drivers of growth. This involves enhancing our global investment program to include:

• more exposure to the high-growth Asia-Pacific region and also the strengthening United States markets;

• continuing to strategically invest across Ontario and Canada;

• more innovation and new economy stocks;

• seeking high quality healthcare and technology assets;

• adding more real estate in areas such as cold storage, life sciences and logistics;

• proactively investing in the benefits and opportunities of a lower carbon global economy.

We remain committed to being a leader in all global investment markets in which we choose to invest as well as in the sustainable investing space; and we are proud to share with you our goal to lower the carbon intensity across our portfolio by 20% by 2025.

2. Our Pensions group remains committed to delivering services on time and as usual. This team of professionals wakes up every day committed to serving our members and employers, and improving our digital tools and service levels with you. In 2020, our member and employer satisfaction levels were 91% and 85% respectively, and we will continuously strive to improve in these areas.

3. I am extremely fortunate to lead a strong, diverse and dedicated global team, united by our clear mission, to deliver sustainable, affordable and meaningful defined benefit pensions to 526,000 of you. Please know that I remain confident in our ability to continue to move forward from a difficult 2020, to look ahead with optimism, and to carry out our commitment to you in the months, years and decades ahead.

I would like to end by expressing my gratitude, personally and on behalf of OMERS, for everything that you do each day to protect and support our communities across Ontario. It is an honour to serve you, and our entire enterprise is inspired and motivated by this extremely important purpose!