The South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) and the National Union of Public Service and Allied Workers (NUPSAW) are outraged by the Competition Commission’s approval of the Government Employees’ Pension Fund’s (GEPF) acquisition of luxury assets, including the Zimbali Hotel, via the Public Investment Corporation (PIC).
This deal exposes a systemic injustice: contributions from public sector workers—whose futures rest on this pension fund—are being deployed in luxury enclaves like Umhlanga, Ballito, and Sandton while their own communities languish in infrastructural decay, exposed to climate crises, and deprived of essential public services.
Shock Facts: The Scope of the Crisis
GEPF & PIC—Size of the Capital
• As of March 31, 2024, the PIC managed R2.69 trillion in assets—of which 87.97% (≈ R2.37 trillion) belongs to the GEPF.
• GEPF alone is Africa’s largest pension fund, holding more than R2.3 trillion in assets .
Asset Allocation: Where Workers’ Money Goes
From PIC’s 2024 figures and corroborating data:
• Local Listed Equity: 43.0%
• Local Listed Bonds: 31.2%
• Cash & Money Markets: 6.8%
• Local Unlisted Investments (incl. private equity, developmental projects): 2.3%
• Listed Property: 2.2%
• Unlisted Property: 2.0%
• Offshore Listed Equity: 8.8%
• Offshore Bonds & Other Assets: Remaining mix    .
Top1000funds.com offers a complementary breakdown for GEPF specifically:
• 50% Domestic Equity, 29% Domestic Bonds, 4% Domestic Property, small allocations to cash, Africa ex-SA equities, foreign bonds and equities.
Another snapshot—a PIC asset snapshot circa March 2024—shows:
• Domestic Listed Equities (in-house): 33.41%
• Domestic Listed Equities (external): 9.57%
• Domestic Bonds: 31.1%
• Cash & Money Markets: 6.85%
• Listed Properties: 2.18%
• Unlisted Properties: 2.03%
• Unlisted Impact Investing / Private Equity / Africa / Offshore allocations: smaller portions, each under 2% .
What These Numbers Reveal
1. Luxury Real Estate Dominates? No—it’s actually a small portion (just ~4% total in property, combining listed and unlisted). Yet even this limited investment is directed toward high-end zones instead of neglected public spaces.
2. Financial Returns Over Social Impact—The overwhelming majority lies in equities and bonds (radio-tuned to financial markets), with minimal focus on infrastructure, housing, or climate resilience.
3. Skewed Priorities—While property acquisition may seem minor numerically, its social impact is extreme: directing fat returns into already privileged areas, instead of communities battered by floods, poor roads, or unchecked energy shortages.
Workers Pay, Communities Decay
• Public servants—nurses, teachers, clinic staff—who contribute to this fund suffer wage freezes, inadequate work conditions, and live among crumbling infrastructure.
• While their contributions finance investment in coastal resorts, climate-vulnerable communities lack drainage, safe housing, or schooling facilities.
• For example, the 2022 KwaZulu-Natal floods claimed over 400 lives and cost R17 billion in damages, disproportionately affecting townships and rural settlements.
SAFTU & NUPSAW Demand Structural Transformation
To realign PIC/GEPF with the needs of workers and their communities:
1. Adopt a Developmental Investment Mandate:
• Redirect capital toward education, healthcare, flood defences, affordable housing, and infrastructure in working-class zones.
2. Democratise Governance:
• Introduce worker-elected representatives on PIC and GEPF boards to ensure alignment with contributors’ interests.
3. Ensure Transparency & Oversight:
• Mandate parliamentary scrutiny and public release of major investments, especially in unlisted/private property and offshore assets.
4. Prioritise Township & Rural Development:
• Set aside specific allocations to build resilient communities, not just global financial portfolios.
5. Link Investments to Industrial & Just Transition Goals:
• Align capital with job creation, green energy initiatives, and national industrial strategy under worker control.
The Zimbali acquisition isn’t an isolated luxury purchase—it symbolizes the broader misdirection of worker savings into spaces that uphold spatial inequality. We call for a radical realignment: workers’ money must be used to uplift their own lives, not decorate those of the privileged. It’s time to reclaim and repurpose South Africa’s largest capital pool for public good.
A Statement was issued on behalf of SAFTU by General Secretary Zwelinzima Vavi.
For more details, contact the National Spokesperson at:
Newton Masuku
066 168 2157
Newtonm@saftu.org.za
