Amos Kambonde
As part of the death benefit offered by Government Institutions Pension Fund (GIPF), qualifying children of deceased members are eligible to receive a monthly pension, payable upon finalisation of the death claim.
Immediately after the lump sum payments and commencement of monthly pension payouts, all children receiving a pension need to be enrolled or registered on the GIPF biometric system at any of the GIPF offices countrywide.
After enrolment, children annuitants and their guardians are further required to verify proof of life every four months; failure to do so will result in the suspension of their monthly pension.
Qualifying children or children annuitants are minor children of deceased members i.e. under the age of 18 years or major children between the ages 18 and 25 years in full-time schooling, and who were substantially dependent on the deceased member.
Children annuitants, who are major children (18-25 years), are thus required to provide proof of schooling from recognised educational institutions, duly stamped and signed by authorised persons for each academic year that the benefits are claimed for.
We, therefore, call upon all qualifying children annuitants to submit their proof of schooling for the 2023 academic year to continue receiving their benefits.
In terms of the Fund rules, a pension payable to a minor child is paid to the guardian, while a pension payable to a major child is made directly into his/her bank account.
GIPF is, therefore, appealing to all guardians of minor children who have not previously submitted guardianship certificates to do so without delay.
Failure to submit will result in non-payment of benefits.
A guardian is a person responsible for making major decisions on behalf of a minor – be it of legal nature or medical care, such as a surviving parent of the child or a person duly appointed by a court of law as a guardian.
When claiming children’s pension benefits, the following documents must be attached to the claim form and submitted to GIPF: a full birth certificate, identity document of the parent/guardian, guardianship letter/certificate, proof of banking details and contact details of the parent or guardian.
The Fund would like to take this opportunity to remind all our annuitants, namely retired members, members receiving disability benefits, qualifying children and spouses of deceased members, to visit any of the GIPF offices countrywide for enrolment, which will end on the 28th of February 2023.
After the enrolment period, the Fund will request all the pensioners and beneficiaries to commence with the verification process, which will be done three times a year.
*Amos Kambonde is GIPF’s Manager: Marketing Services