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Government says it has released an additional K450 million to settle outstanding pension and gratuity obligations for retirees at the University of Zambia (UNZA) and the Copperbelt University (CBU).
Ministry of Education Permanent Secretary for Administration, Noriana Muneku, announced that K88 million had been allocated to clear all outstanding pension and gratuity obligations for retirees at CBU.
Speaking at a media briefing in Lusaka, Muneku said K225 million will be used to settle pension obligations for UNZA retirees covering the period 2021 to 2023, while K137 million has been allocated to clear gratuity payments owed to UNZA retirees for the period 2016 to 2020.
She said the funding demonstrated government’s commitment to honouring its obligations to retired employees in recognition of their dedicated service to the country’s higher education sector.
“Between 2022 and 2025, Government released K556 million to the University of Zambia to facilitate the settlement of outstanding terminal benefits,” Muneku said.
She stated that these resources enabled the clearance of gratuity obligations dating from 2011 to 2016 and pension arrears accumulated between 2011 and 2020.
In addition, Government undertook a landmark debt restructuring exercise involving approximately K2.1 billion owed by the University of Zambia to the Zambia Revenue Authority.
Muneku said the intervention substantially reduced the University’s debt burden and created greater fiscal space for institutional recovery.
“Today, I wish to inform the nation that Government has released an additional K450 million to address outstanding personnel obligations at both the University of Zambia and the Copperbelt University,” she said.
Muneku added that the funds were allocated as K88 million to settle all outstanding pension and gratuity obligations for retirees at the Copperbelt University and K225 million to settle pension obligations for retirees at the University of Zambia covering the period 2021 to 2023.
“These interventions represent an important step towards honouring obligations to former members of staff whose dedicated service contributed immensely to the development of our higher education sector,” she added.
Muneku said while settling historical liabilities was important, financial sustainability alone would not transform the universities and that the Ministry recognized that meaningful reform should also improve the environment in which students learn and staff work.
She said for this reason, the Government had increased operational support to public universities through the 2026 National Budget and the University of Zambia received an additional K90 million in operational funding while the Copperbelt University received an additional K50 million.
“These enhanced allocations are intended to strengthen institutional operations, improve service delivery and enable university management to focus on their core mandate of teaching, research and innovation,” Muneku stated.
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She noted that Government had also committed K78 million towards rehabilitating the sewer and sanitation infrastructure at the University of Zambia.
“The Ministry is fully aware that the University of Zambia, as the country’s premier institution of higher learning, requires broader structural reforms if it is to achieve long-term financial resilience and academic competitiveness,” Muneku said.
“The Ministry therefore expects University Councils, Vice-Chancellors, management teams and every officer entrusted with public resources to uphold the highest standards of accountability, transparency and financial discipline,” she added.
She emphasized that strong internal controls, adherence to approved budgets, timely financial reporting and responsible decision-making must become the defining characteristics of institutional governance.
Lecturers at UNZA had earlier warned of plans to stage a protest on Thursday, July 2, 2026, if the government failed to settle the debts owed them.
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