Three responsibilities guide everything the Association does for its members and for Zimbabwe's workers.
We speak for public and private sector pension funds and pensioners in engagements with Government and the regulator.
Our advocacy work
Through the Certificate of Proficiency (C.O.P) and short courses, we prepare trustees to look after members' savings responsibly.
Training and certification
We help workers, employers and the public understand why pensions matter and how to make the most of them.
Understand your pensionNew to formal work?
Short, plain-language guides to how pensions work in Zimbabwe, what you are entitled to and how today's decisions shape your retirement.
Who pays in, who looks after the money, and how it becomes an income when you stop working.
Why starting early matters, and how investment growth builds on itself over decades.
What happens to your pension when you move employer, and why cashing out costs you more than you think.
How to estimate what you will need, check you are on track, and prepare in the years before you retire.
The information you are entitled to, and where to go if something is wrong with your pension.
A plain-language glossary of the words you will see on payslips, benefit statements and fund documents.
Your pension, age by age
What to know, and what to do, at each stage from your first job to the day you retire.
Illustration only: US$100 a month from age 22, growing at 7% a year. Not a forecast or financial advice.
Age 0 · Birth
Most people will work for 40 years or more before they retire. A pension turns part of each of those years of earnings into an income for the years after work.
What to do: Parents and guardians: your own pension protects your family's future too.
Age 5 · Childhood
The first money lesson most of us learn is that small, regular savings grow into something useful. A pension works on exactly the same principle, over a much longer time.
What to do: Encourage children to put aside part of any money they receive.
Age 13 · Teenage years
Young people who understand saving early are more likely to save as adults. Talking openly at home about needs, wants and planning ahead builds that understanding.
What to do: Discuss how working adults in the family save for later life.
Age 18 · Young adult
Investment returns earn returns of their own. This compounding means money saved in your twenties has decades longer to grow than money saved in your forties.
What to do: Read our guide on how contributions grow before your first job.
Age 22 · First job
Many formal employers in Zimbabwe offer a pension fund. You contribute a share of your salary and your employer usually contributes too, so joining from day one adds to your pay.
What to do: Ask HR what you and your employer each contribute.
Age 25 · Early career
At 7% growth a year, every US$1 saved at 25 could grow to about US$15 by age 65. The same dollar saved at 35 grows to about US$7.60.
What to do: Starting ten years earlier can roughly double what you retire with.
Age 30 · Growing family
Your pension fund can pay benefits to your dependants if you die before retirement. It relies on the beneficiary nomination form you complete, so keep it up to date.
What to do: Update your nomination after marriage, divorce or the birth of a child.
Age 35 · Mid-career
Your fund should send you a statement showing contributions received and how your savings have grown. Check that every month's contributions have arrived.
What to do: Report missing contributions to HR or your fund administrator promptly.
Age 40 · Peak earning years
As your salary rises, your contributions usually rise with it. Where your fund allows additional voluntary contributions, even small increases make a lasting difference.
What to do: Ask whether your fund accepts additional voluntary contributions.
Age 45 · Changing jobs
Cashing out your pension when you change employer means losing years of growth, and the money may be taxed. Ask about preserving your benefit or transferring it to your new fund.
What to do: Read our guide to changing jobs before signing any withdrawal form.
Age 50 · Planning ahead
A common rule of thumb is to aim for around 70% of your final salary in retirement. Comparing that goal with your projected benefit shows whether you are on track.
What to do: Ask your fund for a projection of your retirement benefit.
Age 55 · Getting ready
Fund rules set how your benefit is paid: as a monthly pension, partly as a lump sum, or both. Each option has different tax treatment and long-term effects.
What to do: Speak to your fund's administrator or trustees well before you retire.
Age 60 · Pre-retirement
Payment delays are often caused by missing documents or outdated details. Confirm your personal records, beneficiaries and banking details with your fund.
What to do: Keep certified copies of your ID and fund documents together.
Age 65 · Retirement
A lifetime of contributions now provides an income when you stop working. This is what pensions are for, and why every year of saving counts.
What to do: It is never too early, or too late, to start.
For funds, trustees and policymakers
For trustees
The Certificate of Proficiency is the benchmark qualification for pension fund trustees in Zimbabwe. Classes run every quarter and cover governance, the law, investments and fund administration.
About the C.O.P
For the industry
Each year trustees, principal officers, regulators and service providers meet to debate the issues facing the industry, receive the Council's report and elect its members.
About the Annual Conference
For policymakers
ZAPF makes policy submissions, publishes researched positions and engages the regulator on trustee standards, fund governance and the remittance of contributions.
How the pensions system fits togetherConferences, general meetings and gatherings that bring Zimbabwe's pensions community together.
ZAPF is led by a Council elected by members at the Annual General Meeting, supported by a secretariat in Harare.
Meet the Council and secretariat
Value creation for pension funds was the theme as trustees, regulators and service providers met for the 49th Annual Conference.
Registration opened for Certificate of Proficiency classes, with preparation classes ahead of the trustee examination.
How REITs could offer pension funds a route to diversified property exposure and long-term value.
An economic outlook and investment strategy perspective shared with the pensions community.
Event registration, trustee training dates and industry news, on your phone.
Membership gives your fund a voice with Government and the regulator, discounted training for your trustees and a network of peers.
