THE Government has awarded its pensioners a Cost of Living Adjustment (Cola) that will be backdated to January.

In a statement on Wednesday Public Service Commission Ambassador Jonathan Wutaunashe said the payments will be made from next month.

“The Public Service Commission notifies Government pensioners that procedures relating to Cost of Living Adjustment for all pensioners have been finalised and the adjustment will be effected in March 2020, backdated to January 2020,” he said.

This comes as the National Social Security Authority (NSSA) also doubled the payouts for pensioners from a minimum of $80 to $200 while workers compensation scheme moved from $80 to $200 last year in November.

The increases were backdated to October 2019.

While the payouts were increased, pensioners lamented that they were failing to access cash at the bank which has seen the senior citizens spending at least two nights in a queue trying to access their money.

However, the Insurance and Pensions Commission (IPEC) says pensioners receiving annual pay outs of less than $6000 dollars can salvage their earnings by applying for lump sums.

IPEC said the prevailing hyper inflationary environment posed a threat to the preservation of pension values and it was an option to get a lump sum instead.