NAPSA SETS RECORD STRAIGHT ON SOCIETY BUSINESS PARK

PRESS STATEMENT

 CORRECT POSITION ON STATUS OF SOCIETY BUSINESS PARK

(19 March 2025) The National Pension Scheme Authority (NAPSA) has noted with concern the inaccurate reports circulating regarding the status of Society Business Park following a media engagement hosted by NAPSA on March 17, 2025. Some media outlets have suggested that the Society Business Park has been declared safe and will be reopening soon. This information is incorrect and misleading.

It should be noted that Society Business Park comprises four distinct parts: the office block, the retail mall, the multi-level parkade and the hotel tower. Not all parts of the business park were found to be structurally unsafe for continued occupation. The consultants hired by NAPSA, in their report of July 2024, advised that the parkade (car park) and office block were unsafe for continued occupation. This was clearly communicated and emphasized by the NAPSA Chairman of the Board of Trustees at the press briefing held on 27 August 2024 when the Authority announced the closure of the business park. The Chairman advised that the hotel and retail mail, though not affected, were being shut down as well as a precautionary measure to safeguard human life as these two parts of the Society Business Park were interconnected with the defective parts.

During a media engagement held on Monday, March 17 2025,  both the Director Investments, Matete Sichizya, and the Director General, Muyangwa Muyangwa, advised the media houses present at the engagement that NAPSA was in the process of engaging an engineering consultant to provide guidance on the safest and most efficient approach to demolishing the office block and parkade, which were deemed structurally unsound and unfit for continued occupancy. The Directors reminded the media houses that while the hotel tower and the retail mall were not deemed unsound for continued operation, they too were closed as a precautionary measure due to their interconnectedness to the parkade and office block, which were found unsafe for continued occupation. They further advised that the whole business park would be reopened only when actions had been taken to provide a fully certified and safe commercial premise.

Therefore, NAPSA would like to reiterate that the position communicated in August 2024, at the time of the closure announcement, still stands and the public is advised to disregard the misleading media reports.

Management is deeply saddened and disappointed by the inaccuracies in the media reports and urges journalists to report the facts as communicated to avoid the spread of misinformation and causing unnecessary public concern.

Issued by Cephas Sinyangwe                                      

Head Corporate Affairs