Foreign farmers prioritised over locals in Zimbabwe land payouts, SADC watchdog says

A human rights advocate has criticised Zimbabwe’s compensation framework for former commercial farmers, warning that it favours foreign landowners over local citizens. Ben Freeth, spokesperson for SADC Tribunal Rights Watch, made the comments in an open letter to President Emmerson Mnangagwa. In the letter dated 24 February 2026, Freeth commends the government for moves to compensate the small percentage of landowners from countries that have bilateral investment treaties (BITs) with Zimbabwe, however argues that Zimbabwean farmers and others from non-BIT countries are treated unfairly and discriminatorily.

“I am writing to you out of a deep sense of love for Zimbabwe, her people and our collective future,” Freeth said in the letter, acknowledging the government’s efforts to compensate “the 0.5 percent or so of landowners who come from foreign countries which have treaty agreements with Zimbabwe.” He specifically cited investors from the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Denmark. “These landowners… are either being paid for their farms or given the option to go back to their farms, if they wish to take that option,” Freeth said. He argued that once these farms are paid for, or returned, “the title deeds and the rights that they bestow, will be good, and any future on those farms will be able to be secure and blessed.

Secure, transferrable and bankable property rights are the key to a productive and prosperous future.” However, he contrasts this with the treatment of Zimbabwean farmers and those from countries without bilateral investment treaties. “Unfortunately, the moves to compensate farmers and landowners who are Zimbabweans or from countries that do not have bilateral investment treaties, are different,” Freeth said. “Such farmers are only being given the option of receiving a one percent payment in cash for a discounted valuation of the improvements on their farms followed by a further one percent.

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Any further payments are due to be in government bonds which, if history is a judge, will not be worth very much.” Freeth argued this will create a dual system of rights. “We therefore have a very weighted system of favouritism where foreigners are being allocated massively disproportionate rights over and above the rights of local people. How can one group of people be allocated more rights than another group of people? This is discriminatory,” said the spokesperson.

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