Rights trust in bid to overhaul pensions law

pension and insurance legislation for consideration. This follows an invitation to the organisation by the ministry earlier this year.

The proposals are detailed in a 25-page section of a 50-page document. The proposals are split into subsections setting forth insurance company contractual obligations to subscribers of pension and insurance service, pension and insurance funds management practices to be complied with by insurance companies and related service providers and regulatory or supervisory practices to be complied with by the regulator of pension and insurance operations in Zimbabwe.

Unlike current pension and insurance legislation, ZimPIRT proposals remove all latitude for insurance companies and the regulator to make arbitrary decisions about what should be done with regards to a pension and, or insurance contract, about how funds accumulating from such contracts should be accounted for, about the level of reserves that should be maintained by insurance companies in support of contractual obligations, the investment media in which the reserves should maintained among several other proposals.

The proposals are very explicit about the need for transparency and consistency in pension and insurance funds management.
ZimPIRT general manager Mr Martin Tarusenga said that “the objectives of our proposals are to ensure that pension and insurance funds management are in the true spirit of pension and insurance service provision to provide, financially or otherwise, for stated adversities of life including disability, old age infirmity, death among other adversities”.

This can only be achieved in a legislative environment where pension and insurance service providers act and manage funds thereof in accordance with established pension and insurance management practices, in zero tolerance”.

Mr Tarusenga explained that the proposals were motivated by the problems faced by members of his organisations in trying to secure the full rightful pension and insurance benefits. “Insurance companies and related service providers and IPEC, the regulator acted, apparently negligently, without any sense of responsibility” he said.

“In the circumstances one of the ways to bring them to account was through a review of the pertinent legislation, for the various pillars of pension and insurance service provision in Zimbabwe.”

Section II of the proposal document discusses the various forms of pension and insurance service provision in Zimbabwe, covering occupational pension schemes, NSSA Pension and other Benefits Scheme, Public Service pension arrangements, and others.

Section 3 of the document details the problems of that subscribers of pension and insurance services face with insurance companies and related service providers and IPEC, the regulator.