Land reform initiated in Zimbabwe in 2000 The goal was to redistribute land fairly among white farmers and the black minority, addressing the failed Lancaster House Agreement of December 21, 1979. Proponents argued the redistribution was necessary as commercial farms occupied the most fertile lands, leaving only dry, dusty areas for communal use.
The redistribution caused significant chaos, with white farmers being forcibly removed from farms they had cultivated for decades. Although intended to be non-violent, the process involved brute force, leading to the deaths of many farmers. Some viewed this as a “necessary evil” to level the playing field, as many white farmers owned massive tracts of land, with some having multiple farms spanning thousands of hectares.
Twenty-four years later, the Zimbabwean government, led by President Emmerson Mnangagwa, has started compensating 1,300 white farmers who lost land during the 2000 land reform. These farmers have signed up to receive compensation and will be paid in 10-year treasury bills, according to a government official.
“We now have to go through the process of vetting them and confirming the amounts that they are owed,” said Andrew Bvumbe, head of debt management in the Ministry of Finance, in an interview last month.
“With these 1,300, we want to move as quickly as possible. Maybe by the end of the third quarter of this year, we want to get this out of the way.”
Under an accord signed in 2020, the government agreed to compensate 4,000 white farmers whose land was seized by state-backed militants, but it has repeatedly missed payment deadlines. The compensation deal is expected to cost $3.5 billion over 10 years. Bvumbe said that “pay-outs will be made for improvements made to farms, rather than the land itself. If others start seeing that we are acting, maybe they will also join the process.”