Strategic Outline

Since the formulation of the Government Institutions Pension Fund (GIPF) on 01 October 1989, the Fund has gradually grown from one of the many average registered pension funds in Namibia, to becoming Namibia’s largest corporate citizen and entity. Over the decades, the Fund has operated in a manner that allowed it to fulfill its mandate to its members whilst increasingly contributing to the national context within which it exists. However, as anticipated for a large defined benefit pension fund, the Fund has begun to enter into an era of maturity which is brought about by a fundamental change in some of the key elements of the GIPF business model such as the contributions received, the benefits paid, the active membership profile and importance of annuitant’s management amongst many others. Similarly, there has been a material change in the regulatory environment within which the GIPF subscribes and complies to, namely the Pensions Funds Act of 1956 as amended, changing to the Financial Institutions & Markets act (FIMA). In addition to these internal factors, the macro global macro-economic outlook over the strategic period suggests a period of market volatility, high inflation and global recession. These external factors demand a strategic response and positioning from the GIPF.

As a significant role player in the national and regional context, the GIPF strategic plan for 2023 to 2026 undertakes to take details stock of the material changes in its macro and micro-environment, assess those changes upon the core mandate of the GIPF as set out in the Fund Rules and devise responsive actions that will allow the Fund to continue delivering on the promised benefits that its members are entitled to. The GIPF Board of Trustees recognized that the seasons have changed in terms of the broader geopolitical, economic and social construct. As a Fund that is exposed to every large global financial market through its diverse asset exposure, the Fund has become increasingly sensitive to factors that may be outside of its control and therefore this strategic plan provides an adequate and comprehensive positioning statement that will allow the GIPF to refocus on its core mandate whilst navigating the external and internal changes.

The GIPF Strategic Plan 2023 – 2026 takes a methodical, systematic approach to analyzing the broad context and the rationale that informed its decisions to undertake certain strategic responses, all with the aim of attaining the Funds onerous mission and ambitious vision.