Staff Writer
THE National Social Security Authority (NSSA) has increased has increased pension benefit payouts by 65 % with effect from October 1 2020 despite the fact inflation has spiraled beyond 500 %.
The announcement made under Statutory Instrument 108 of 2020, sets out increments for various types of pensions.
“The NSSA Pension and Other Benefits Scheme rates is amended in section 10 as follows in 10A by the deletion of “3½%” and the substitution of “4 ½ %” with effect from 1st January, 2020,” the statement said.
The regulations have also deleted US$30 minimum invalidity pension and replaced with ZWL$80 backdated to October 1 2019.
The rate of pension retirement was moved from US$60 and substituted ZWL$200 with effect from October 2019.
The social authority was paying around $240 payouts per month and the new increments will push the payouts to an estimated $400 per month.
The increments come at a time when month on month inflation is at 27 % while the year on year inflation as measured by all CPI rate was at 676.39 up from 540.16 % recorded in the month of February.
The country’s inflation continues to sustain an upward trajectory against a backdrop of poor industrial productivity and unstable foreign currency exchange market.
