Zimbabwe fails to pay white farmers who had land expropriated

White commercial growers in Zimbabwe said that the government has failed to pay part of $331 million in compensation to farmers for expropriating their land but reimbursed others who weren't part of the deal.

In a joint letter to the finance ministry dated December 10, the Commercial Farmers Union and the Southern African Commercial Alliance asked for urgent talks with the government. The letter said many of their members are now destitute and have had their dignity taken away as a result of failure to get reimbursed through the so-called Global Compensation Deal.

Under an accord signed in 2020, the government agreed to compensate about 4,000 White farmers whose land was seized by state-backed militants, but it has repeatedly missed payment deadlines. The government expects the deal to cost $3.5 billion over as many as 10 years.

The Harare-based government has defended the land seizures, saying they were meant to address colonial imbalances.

"The current approach risks eroding trust and undermining the structured dialogue platform's objectives," the unions said in the letter seen by Bloomberg and confirmed by the Finance Ministry. "We urge your ministry to prioritise dialogue with the GCD signatories to develop a cohesive, homegrown solution that balance compensation with agricultural recovery."

So far 1 300 former white commercial farmers have signed up to receive compensation, according to official data.

Zimbabwe set aside $35 million in the budget for the year that ended March 31 to begin payments. It set aside $10 million for the current fiscal year.

The country has identified at least 439 former landowners as beneficiaries for the financial settlement of $331 million, according to the African Development Bank.

The government will continue to make payments to farmers who want to be compensated, said Andrew Bvumbe, the head of debt management in the finance ministry.