Govt to clear pre-2009 pensions backlog

📅 Published: August 16, 2025

📰 Source: zimbabwesituation

Curated by AllZimNews.com

In 2015, the Government established the Justice Smith Commission of Inquiry to investigate the loss of value in insurance policies and pensions due to the conversion of Zimbabwe dollar-denominated benefits to the US dollar-dominated multicurrency system in 2009.

The commission found that policyholders and pension scheme members were indeed prejudiced during the conversion process and recommended compensation.

SI162 of 2023 established the framework for the compensation payouts, with the Government indicating it has begun compensating its pensioners.

Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube, in a speech read on his behalf by the finance director in his Ministry, Mr Kudakwashe Zata, during the Annual General Meeting for the Insurance and Pensions Commission in Harare yesterday, stressed the urgency of resolving the long-overdue pre-2009 compensation issue. “There is a need to bring closure to the issue of 2009 compensation, which is overdue.

The Government has already commenced paying its pensioners and is committed to bringing the issue to finality within the next three years. ”Prof Ncube urged the Insurance and Pensions Commission (IPEC) “to ensure that the industry also takes this issue seriously. ” He reiterated that Treasury was “decisively dealing with the matter” and actively pushing for amendments to SI 162 of 2023.

The resolution of the pre-2009 compensations is also outlined as a policy measure within the 2025 National Budget, which announced the need for comprehensive reforms to the national pension system.

Initial payments under these schemes were slated for March 2024, but delays arose due to non-compliance with provisions of SI 162 of 2023, prompting IPEC to push for the current amendments to operationalise the compensation process.

IPEC Commissioner Dr Grace Muradzikwa reported that, to date, two pension funds have had their compensation frameworks approved, resulting in US$522 000 already disbursed out of an approved US$750 000.

She acknowledged that previous delays may have stemmed from challenges related to a lack of “granular data” and challenges in “asset separation” during the investigation period. “Now we have come up with a number of interventions so that we can close this; hence, instead of insisting on granular data and proof of asset separation, we have been using the financial statements, and I also want stakeholders to know that we are now aligned with the industry in terms of closure,” Dr Muradzikwa said. “We have now agreed on a once-off shareholder levy to compensate pensioners and I want to say that compensation is not restitution.

I am on record as saying that it is impossible to compensate pensioners for what they lost. “We are also looking at the available funding options, but we will definitely make sure that pensioners get something towards the loss that they experienced. “In the proposal, we have also proposed some minimum floss amounts that the pensioners will get and some maximum amounts that the pensioners will get”.

Dr Muradzikwa added that there is a strong commitment from the industry to finalise pre-2009 compensation. “We just need our stakeholders, the Ministry of Finance and the Attorney-General’s Office, to come on board,” she said.

Dr Muradzikwa added that the Government is ready to disburse its portion towards pre-2009 compensation, as are IPEC and the industry.