The Insurance and Pensions Commission (Ipec) reports that insurance firms and pension funds have invested millions of dollars into agriculture, energy, and infrastructure development, in line with the sector's prescribed asset regulatory requirements.
This development comes as Ipec now has the authority to garnish the accounts of defaulting employers, a move expected to improve the remittance of employee contributions.
Speaking at the recently concluded Zimbabwe Economic Development Conference (Zedcon) in Bulawayo, Ipec Commissioner Dr Grace Muradzikwa said pension and insurance funds are not only mandated to invest in prescribed assets, but are also emerging as vital players in driving national development.
"The role of pension funds and insurers in building the economy is evident," Dr Muradzikwa told delegates.
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She revealed that approximately US$57,3 million has so far been channelled into renewable energy projects, which will significantly boost domestic power generation at a time when the country faces severe shortages.
"Solar and mini-hydro power plants financed by insurance companies and pension funds are feeding into the national grid. The Zimbabwe Electricity Distribution and Transmission Company is the main off-taker," she said.
Notable projects include Honde Hydro Power (US$10 million), Guruve Solar (US$4,7 million), Centragrid (US$26 million), Gold Saif-Penhalonga Energy (US$3,2 million), and Great Zimbabwe Hydro (US$5 million).
On agriculture, Dr Muradzikwa said pension and insurance firms have invested in the agricultural index-based pilot project (Farmer's Basket) in Goromonzi District, which enrolled 4 014 smallholder farmers. Following the El Niño-induced drought, a US$232 000 payout was made to affected farmers.
For the 2024/25 season, the initiative has been scaled up to eight rural provinces -- one district per province -- with 20 411 smallholder farmers signed up. However, fewer than 1 000 farmers paid the premium, highlighting the need for broader participation.
Since 2019, pensions and insurance entities have invested about US$400 million into Agro-Bills.
Meanwhile, Dr Muradzikwa said Ipec is now armed with garnishing authority, a major legal reform set to transform supervision and compliance in the sector.
"We now have garnish orders, just like Zimra," she said. "We can garnish accounts of employers who are not remitting pension contributions. We are working on enhanced regulation and supervision of the sector."
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These powers give Ipec greater ability to hold defaulting employers accountable, addressing a long-standing weakness identified by the Justice Smith Commission of Inquiry, which uncovered widespread malpractices in the pensions and insurance industry.
"A lot of our work right now is centred around legal reforms to strengthen supervision and consumer protection. One of the legal reforms we are very proud of is that we now have garnish orders. We have done a lot of work to address some of the issues identified by the Justice Smith Commission. Many of you have raised questions about the Commission's recommendations," Dr Muradzikwa said.
Dr Muradzikwa also acknowledged the challenge of declining public trust in pension schemes.
"The level of pension contributions has also gone down significantly," she noted. "This is the big elephant in the room for us as a regulator for the insurance sector. We are working on confidence restoration measures."
The garnishing powers are aligned with broader government-led reforms designed to protect workers' retirement savings, strengthen financial supervision, and enhance transparency across the insurance and pensions sector.
