PSPF CEO HAILS ZAMBIA ARMY SUPPORT TOWARDS THE INSTITUTIONS DIGITALISATION EFFORTS

The Chief Executive Officer of the Public Service Pensions Fund (PSPF), Mr. Francis Pindani Nyirenda, has commended the Zambia Army for its ongoing support of the Fund's digitalisation efforts, which are designed to enhance pension administration and access to services for members.

Mr. Nyirenda reassured the Zambia Army command of PSPF’s dedication to timely processing of retirement benefits and the successful implementation of the 2024-2028 Strategic Plan for the benefit of its members.

Mr. Nyirenda made these remarks during a courtesy call with his senior management team to the Zambia Army Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff, Major General Geoffrey Choongo Zyeele, at the Zambia Army Headquarters in Lusaka on August 28, 2024.

“As you may be aware, the Zambian Government through Republican President Mr. Hakainde Hichilema made a public policy pronouncement that retirees would be paid their dues within three months of retirement. Further, government has commenced the implementation of E-Services through government Ministries including parastatals and statutory bodies and we are all expected to emulate the same”, he said.

The CEO said that to align with these policies, PSPF has established six strategic objectives in its 2024-2028 Strategic Plan two of which focus on adhering to government policies namely: digitising and automating all pension processes, and reducing pension benefits processing time from 21 days to two days. He highlighted that the success of the initiative will depend on the integration and digitalisation of systems across various institutions, including Zambia Army.

Mr. Nyirenda also provided an update on the progress of these strategic objectives which include among others, the development of the E-PSPF Platform for the electronic transmission of files and Mobile Applications enabling our members to access services on their phones.

And Zambia Army Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff Major General Geoffrey Choongo Zyeele pledged support towards PSPF’s ambitious plan to digitilise and automate all business processes, and reduce pension benefits processing time from 21 days to two days.

Major General Zyeele said Zambia Army has enjoyed a long-standing and productive relationship with PSPF saying it is therefore crucial that the two institutions continue building on this cooperation, especially as they work towards improving the welfare of service members as they transition from active duty.

He said that he was pleased with the Fund’s 2024-2028 strategic plan, which aligns with government policies on the timely payment of retirement benefits further highlighting the importance of the upcoming digitisation of Zambia Army records and the integration of the PSPF system with the Army's payroll.