LAWYER PUNCHES HOLE IN NAPSA AMENDMENT ACT
By Edwin Mbewe
The recently assented to National Pensions Scheme (Amendment) Bill, is uncomfortably vague (unclear). Of particular interest is Clause 3 of the Bill which when paraphrased would read as follows:
A person, who before 1st February, 2000, was under 60 years and was a member of the existing fund (i.e. the Zambia National Provident Fund), may be paid a one-off age benefit under the Zambia National Provident Fund where that person –
(a) attains the minimum age of 36; and
(b) has made contributions to the Zambia National Provident Fund.
This seems to suggest that a person who was not a member of the Zambia National Provident Fund and thus never made any contributions to the said Fund cannot be paid a one-off age benefit under the Zambia National Provident Fund even if they reach the age of 36.
By virtue of Section 10 of the National Pension Scheme Act, the fund of the Zambia National Provident Fund is now part of the funds of the Scheme managed or administered by the National Pension Scheme Authority (NAPSA).
It’s unclear why the proposed amendment to Section 39 of the National Pension Scheme Act only provides for a payment of a one-off age benefit under the Zambia National Provident Fund to a person, who before 1st February, 2000, was under 60 years and was a member of the Zambia National Provident Fund.
In my view, the proposed amendment should have been applicable to persons who are members of the National Pension Scheme. That would have automatically captured persons who were members of the Zambia National Provident Fund as well.
If the intention was to amend the NAPSA Act so as to provide members of the Scheme an option to access part of the contributions before retirement, that intention has not been clearly expressed.
