Staff writer
BULAWAYO — Zimbabwe’s pension industry must move beyond strategy documents and activity reports and demonstrate measurable value to members, the Zimbabwe Association of Pension Funds (ZAPF) has said, as the sector faces growing demands for stronger governance, digital transformation and financial sustainability.
ZAPF Director General Sandra Musevenzo said the association was tightening its execution framework to ensure that its 2024–2026 Strategic Plan ends with measurable results rather than a list of completed activities.
Addressing the recently held 7th edition of the Zimbabwe Association of Pension Funds (ZAPF) Principal Officers and Chairmen’s Convention in Bulawayo, Musevenzo said the association’s focus was now firmly on turning strategy into evidence of value for members.
“Our proposition is simple: ZAPF has a clear strategic destination and a disciplined system for reaching it,” she said. “The Balanced Scorecard converts ambition into owned, measured and reviewable performance—so the 2024–2026 strategy finishes with proof of member value.”
The message comes at a critical point for Zimbabwe’s pension sector, where funds are under pressure to demonstrate that governance structures, investment decisions, member services and industry representation ultimately translate into better outcomes for members.
Musevenzo said ZAPF had streamlined its strategy around five pillars — partnerships, brand leadership, value creation, resourcing and digital transformation — with the objective of delivering five flagship products and 12 non-negotiable objectives by December 2026.
These include intelligence, advocacy, the ZAPF Academy, digital services and an annual Member Value Statement.
“The plan is deliberately focused. Five pillars converge on a single test: can members see and use the value ZAPF creates?” Musevenzo said.
Musevenzo said the accountability chain would extend from ZAPF’s enterprise scorecard to the Director General, committees, product owners and individual staff performance contracts.
“Every priority has one owner, one KPI, one evidence source and one review date,” she said.
The approach also introduces a 30/60/90-day execution cycle, supported by weekly owner meetings, monthly management dashboard reviews, committee evidence checkpoints and quarterly Council reviews.
Importantly, under the new system, persistent problems are expected to trigger corrective action rather than simply appear repeatedly in reports.
“A red item repeated twice triggers a corrective decision,” Musevenzo said.
Musevenzo said ZAPF would publish a year-end performance and member-value scorecard, providing a basis for assessing whether the organisation had delivered on its commitments.
“We choose focus. We accept accountability. We will finish with proof,” she said.
