eBusiness Weekly
Livingstone Marufu
Government is finalising compensation to white former commercial farmers whose land it acquired for resettlement, but was protected under Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements (Bippas).
This falls in line with President Mnangagwa’s Government policy thrust with regards to respect for the rule of law and property rights, which Government sees as key ingredients to attract foreign investment.
Of the eight agricultural provinces, five have already been evaluated as Government moves to spruce up its image in respect of property rights.
In its quest to resolve what went wrong in the past, rebuild agriculture and the economy, Government has already indicated it will also issue 99 year leases to interested farmers, including white for commercial farmers.
So far around 3100 out of 6000 farms, which translates to around 11 million hectares (50 percent of the country’s productive land), have already been evaluated for compensation to former owners for their loss.
Finance and Economic Planning Minister Patrick Chinamasa, recently told Parliament portfolio committee on land, Agriculture and Resettlement that white farmers’ associations were helping in speeding up the process.
He said the exercise was being carried out in line with Section 295 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
“We have been engaging the farmers with respect to compensation. We have been engaging and certainly in my office, I have been engaging the Farmers Association representative, John Laurie and others almost for the past four years.
“We agreed that we do an evaluation of the properties with their cooperation and we have finished Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland West, Matabeleland North and South respectively because we need to come up with a round figure with respect to compensation.
“We are half way through in Mashonaland East Province and we are preparing to start other remaining provinces like Manicaland,” said Minister Chinamasa.
He said: “Not just for compensation for those where we are not paying compensation for improvements, but also for Bippa farms. There are Bippa farms that were taken and settled by A1 farmers and it is not possible and we have agreed.
“It is not possible to reverse what happened. So what is important is to evaluate the compensation due to the loss that happened to that occupation – all that we are undertaking.”
Recently, top Government official who requested not to be named told Business Weekly that Zimbabwe had paid around $80 million of the estimated $150 million compensation to white farmer commercial farmers.
However, some farmers are reportedly pushing for up to $$8,5 billion in land compensation.
Sources within the land evaluation team said $8, 5 billion was a bit too ambitious and cannot be sustained given the current state of the economy, but negotiations were underway for a win- win solution.
“We are happy that we have managed to reach an agreement with the elite farmers clubs in terms of compensation and most of them are forthcoming.
“As far as we remember we have not heard any demand for $8,5 million compensation because white farmers are very keen, to partner some indigenous commercial farmers who have 99 year.
“Government is also coming up with surveys for new boundaries and vetting some farms in case there are some multiple farm owners. If they discover a considerable number of farms under multiple ownership, then some white farmers are going to benefit from that programme, hence there is no way they will demand such money ($8, 5 billion).
“Whites are very willing to come back to the country as we still have the best climate conditions and best soils so we are working very hard to make that happen, “said the source.
Government has provided resources also to do surveys for new boundaries and this is where the cadre system or the GPS will also assist.
The system will help fix new boundaries because one cannot have the 99 year leases unless there is a survey map, given the more advanced technology now, the process can be done faster than before.
Zimbabwe has already started normalising relations with United Kingdom, US, Commonwealth and all other western countries it differed with in the past.
The Government says it will promote and protect democratisation and rule of law will be the lynchpin of Zimbabwe’s society. It said it will not discriminate against anyone in terms of race, tribe, colour and religion.
All local whites are entitled to Zimbabwean land just as their blacks counterparts.
