From inquiry to inaction

The political economy of pension compensation in Zimbabwe

Bibliographic Data

ID19233058
AuthorsSikanyiso Masuku (0000-0001-9541-3948, Institute for Democracy, Citizenship and Public Policy in Africa, University of Cape Town, corresponding author)
Year2026
Pages1-18
Publication date2026-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueDevelopment Southern Africa (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0376-835X • E-ISSN: 1470-3637
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/0376835x.2026.2680996
OpenAlexW7163020430
LanguageEN
References cited19

Zimbabwe’s 2000–2009 economic crisis led to the erosion of many pension contributions. Whilst the 2017 Smith Commission presented a compensation scheme for those who lost their savings – almost ten years later, implementation remains slow. Despite the limited progress in compensating civil servants, private-sector compensation has stalled, with only one scheme approved out of nearly a thousand registered funds. In understanding why we haven’t seen reasonable progress in implementing the compensation scheme – secondary data analysis was used to consult the Smith Commission, along with other reports (published between 2015 and 2025), from the media, government, and relevant agencies. The study attributes the delays in honoring compensations to; (i) forensic, actuarial and legal obstacles (ii) data integrity/status problems and (iii) challenges with member identification/tracing and high emigration rates. The study situates these implementation barriers within wider challenges of public-institution reform and restorative justice following macroeconomic collapse and regulatory failures

Incentive · New political economy · Pension · Politics · African studies and sociopolitical issues · demographic modeling and climate adaptation · Financial Literacy, Pension, Retirement Analysis

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