President Mnangagwa

Union says majority holding out for “full compensation” …Desperate minority accepted old govt offers …Breakthrough will boost inv estors confidence

Martin Kadzere
Zimbabwe’s former commercial white farmers are hoping that a new dialogue with the government over compensation for lost properties will succeed and help send a positive message to foreign investors over private property rights, a senior executive of the farmers’ union said.

A majority of the affected farmers rejected previous compensation offers by government–limited to just investments —  and were holding out for full payment encompassing land and improvements, according to the Commercial Farmers Union (CFU).

Only those facing extreme financial hardships or medical problems accepted the offers, which were between 10 and 15 percent of professional valuation of their properties, it said.

Ben Gilpin, director at CFU, told Business Weekly that full compensation, coupled with restoration of rights “to our constituency”,  would send positive messages to potential investors seeking for opportunities in Zimbabwe.

The government embarked on the land reform programme since 2000, an exercise it said was meant to redress colonial land distribution imbalances by parcelling redistributing land from minority white commercial farmers to indigenous people.

“The issue here is that the land and improvements are inseparable and settlement requires that both aspects are dealt with,” Gilpin said. “The majority of commercial farmers, as Zimbabwean citizens, invested in good faith post-independence and would see fairness in equal treatment with other affected investors.”

He said between 250 and 300 white former commercial farmers had received compensation, with the majority paid before dollarization. “Many have approached government for compensation but considering on average offers equate to around 10-15 percent of the professional valuation of their properties, generally it has been only those facing extreme hardship or medical problems who accepted.”

A tough call

He, however, said they were confident the ongoing dialogue with the government would lead to a positive conclusive agreement on farm compensation.

The redistribution programme strained relationships between the government and western powers which responded by imposing economic sanctions on Zimbabwe.

Last year, the government said it paid $134 million in compensations. “There is much goodwill from the Commercial Farmers Union, the government and the international community.

“We believe the dialogue will lead to a breakthrough. A significant number of commercial farmers acquired their farms post-independence, many with certificates of no present interest issued by the government.    This fact is often over looked.

“It is a tough call for everybody, but Zimbabwe has to follow the best international standards, if it is to regain lost confidence,” said Gilpin. Last week, Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa said the government would pay for improvements to farmers while evaluations to determine compensation were ongoing.

“We have teams now evaluating what compensation to pay,” said minister Chimamasa.

Government sources said only Masvingo and Manicaland were yet to be evaluated.

“All provinces have been completed except for Masvingo, where the evaluation is currently underway, and Manicaland. “But of course, they would mop up especially at the farms with some serious disputes.”

President Mnangagwa– keen to rebuild Zimbabwe’s battered economy and mend ties with countries that imposed sanctions on Zimbabwe said land reform was irreversible but pledged to compensate farmers who lost their land during the land reform.