THE Insurance and Pensions Commission says the sector has invested millions of dollars into agriculture, energy and infrastructure development in line with the sector's prescribed asset regulatory requirements
This comes as IPEC pointed out that it now has the power to garnish the accounts of defaulting employers, which is expected to improve remittance of employee contributions.
Speaking at the just-ended Zimbabwe Economic Development Conference in Bulawayo, IPEC Commissioner Dr Grace Muradzikwa said pension and insurance funds were not only mandated to invest in prescribed assets, but were also emerging as vital players in propelling national development.
"The role of pension funds and insurers in building the economy is evident," Dr Muradzikwa told delegates.
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IPEC Commissioner Dr Grace Muradzikwa said pension and insurance funds were not only mandated to invest in prescribed assets, but were also emerging as vital players in propelling national development.
She revealed that about US$57,3 million had so far been channelled into renewable energy projects, which would go a long way in increasing domestic power generation at a time the country faces a severe power shortage.
"Solar and mini-hydro power plants financed by insurance companies and pension funds are feeding into the national grid. 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 had 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 the affected farmers.
For the 2024/25 season, the initiative has since been scaled up to eight rural provinces, one district per province, with 20 411 smallholder farmers signed up. However, less than 1 000 farmers paid the premium, underscoring the need for broader buy-in.
Since 2019, pensions and insurance entities have invested about US$400 million into Agro-Bills.
Meanwhile, Dr Muradzikwa said IPEC was now armed with garnishing authority, a major legal reform set to transform supervision and compliance in the sector.
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"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."
The powers give IPEC stronger power to hold defaulting employers accountable, correcting a long-standing weakness flagged in the Justice Smith Commission of Inquiry, which unearthed widespread malpractices in the pensions and insurance industry.
"A lot of our work right now is really centred around legal reforms to strengthen supervision and consumer protection," Dr Muradzikwa said.
"And I think one of the legal reforms that we are very proud of is that we now have garnish orders."
She added: "We have done a lot of work to address some of those mischiefs that were identified by the Justice Smith Commission. And I just want to share with you, because a lot of you, when I meet you, are talking about the Justice Smith Commission, the recommendations."
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. "So, colleagues, 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.
