History

 The National Pension Scheme Authority (NAPSA) was established in February 2000 by the National Pension Scheme Act no. 40 of 1996 of the Laws of Zambia.
This followed the closure of the Zambia National Provident Fund (ZNPF) after the responsible Act under which it was formed was repealed. This means that ZNPF stopped receiving contributions on 31stJanuary 2000.
NAPSA was formed to provide income security against the risk arising from retirement (old age), death and invalidity with a focus on adequacy of benefits and monthly receipt of pension in a better way than the repealed ZNPF. This is achieved through the payment of different kinds of benefits to its members.
As earlier noted, many people were registered under the ZNPF prior to the establishment of NAPSA and actually made contributions to that particular scheme.
NAPSA is the official custodian and manager of the assets of the ZNPF. This means that NAPSA is managing all the funds contributed to the ZNPF and has continued paying benefits to eligible members of that scheme as they qualify for the same.
NAPSA has 28 operational offices across the country in various towns and districts. The Authority also operates monthly mobile offices in places where there is no physical presence and recently customer care offices were introduced and will be established in places such as shopping malls and at work premises such as in mining areas in order to provide services at the convenience of the members, employers and general public.
Some of the key responsibilities of NAPSA are; registration of employers and employees, collection of contributions, enforcement of compliance, investment of funds not immediately required for payment of benefits, processing of claims and payment of benefits and education of members.
NAPSA is financed through contributions at a total of 10 percent of employee’s gross earnings capped at 4 times the National Average Earnings and this contribution is shared at 5% employer and 5% employee. Registration with NAPSA is done by the employer representative who completes an employer registration form, and also ensures that workers complete member registration forms.
Benefits payable under NAPSA include; Retirement, Invalidity, and Survivors Pension. Individuals who do not qualify for a pension are paid a lump sum.
The funds collected are invested in order to grow the reserve fund and investments are done in accordance with the approved investments guidelines and asset allocation rules.