Workers' pension fund says some barons already under prosecution for unauthorised selling its land

The National Social Security Authority has issued an urgent public notice warning that land barons are illegally selling stands on its Glaudina Phase 1 and Phase 2 properties, land that belongs to Zimbabwe's national workers' pension fund.

NSSA says the only authorised seller of its Glaudina stands is the National Building Society and has made clear it will not compensate anyone who loses money in an unauthorised transaction. The authority says legal action has already been taken against some of the agents caught operating illegally in the area.

The development comes at a moment when thousands of Harare families are learning, the hard way, what buying from the wrong person costs.

WHAT IS HAPPENING ACROSS HARARE

Harare is currently sitting on 37 High Court demolition orders covering thousands of structures across the city. The bulldozers have already been in Whitecliff where they flattened over 300 homes, as well Harare South, Budiriro, and Mabelreign. More than 22,000 structures across 39 areas are now under scrutiny.

The pattern is consistent: land barons identify land, peg it, generate paperwork that looks legitimate including forged offer letters, scanned signatures, fake agreements of sale and sell.

Local authorities and the police have indicated that removing the illegal settlers is not easy once structures go up. The lengthy and often complicated legal process of getting an eviction order gives land barons cover and yet more time to keep on selling land that they don’t own.  

When the court orders eventually come, buyers appear like poor victims of evil state agents and selfish owners while the land barons posture as empowerment agents.

In Hopley, nearly 100 families faced displacement in February 2026. In Epworth, planners identified 16,500 structures sitting on land-use conflict zones. The City of Harare has said it will not stop demolishing structures put up without the correct paperwork in place.

The Glaudina situation shows that even Government is not immune to land hijacking. NSSA is a national authority and its acquisitions are funded from workers' monthly contributions. Stealing the land is direct thefth from every present and future beneficiary of the pension fund.

FACT BOX: Acquiring a Stand in Harare — What You Must Check

🔴 For NSSA stands in Glaudina specifically: The only authorised seller is NBS. Call before you pay anyone anything.

• NBS Mortgages: +263 777 209 286
• NBS Contact Centre: 08677 010 704
• NSSA: contactcentre@nssa.org.zw | www.nssa.org.zw

🔴 For any urban stand anywhere in Harare: Verify at the City of Harare before committing. Confirm the stand exists on an approved layout, is zoned residential, and that the seller has legal title — not just an offer letter or a site plan.

🔴 Red flags that should make you walk away:

• Pressure to pay quickly or lose the stand
• No title deed available for inspection
• Agent name-drops a politician or official as backing
• "Regularisation is coming" — this is a sales line, not a legal guarantee
• No physical council office where the sale can be confirmed

🔴 Already on disputed land? Document everything — every payment, every receipt, every message. Contact Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) immediately if you receive a demolition notice.