Zimbabwean Government to compensate former white farmers

Zimbabwe will start paying compensation to the thousands of white farmers who lost land under former president Robert Mugabe’s land reform.

Nearly two decades ago, Mugabe’s government carried out the evictions of 4,500 white farmers and redistributed the land to 300 000 black families.

The evictions were often carried out in a violent matter, while the government claimed it was addressing the imbalances of the past colonial era.

Now, the former white farmers who had their land expropriated have accepted the government’s offer of an interim payment of RTG$53m, which is R238m at the current exchange rates.

This follows the country’s budgeting for RTG53m in its 2019 national budget for the former farmers and the union representing them accepting the offer.

Furthermore, the Commercial Farmers Union issued a statement, claiming they had to accept the advanced interim payment, as several of the farmers are in financial dire straits.

In a separate statement, the Zimbabwean government says the registration papers for the beneficiary farmers will be completed by the end of April 2019. Disbursements will then begin.

But why compensate the farmers now, nearly 20 years after they were evicted from their lands?

President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government views the compensation as a way to mend ties with the West.

The Zimbabwean government claims it will only pay compensation for infrastructure and improvements on the farms and not for the actual land. While only paying for this, it is talking to international financial institutions on options to raise the full amount to pay the various farmers.

Additionally, a committee has been established and comprises government officials and former farmers to value the improvements made on the farms.

With the Zimbabwean government taking steps to compensate the former white farmers, what are your thoughts on the situation? Share your views with us in the comment section below.