Broken promises: the collapse of Zimbabwe’s land compensation

Born and bred in Zimbabwe, 68-year-old farmer Stuart Brent was evicted from Kilvington Farm in Norton, just outside Harare, in September 2002. In April this year, local media reported that the government had started paying white farmers compensation for the land grabs that occurred under the so-called Fast-track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP). The Valuation Consortium (Valcon), a Zimbabwean valuation company, and the government’s Land Compensation Committee came up with a valuation figure of US$5,2 billion (R90 billion) for improvements on farms. According to the Compensation Steering Committee (CSC), the Commercial Farmers’ Union came up with a compensation figure of US$10 billion (R174 billion), while independent professional valuers settled for US$8,5 billion (R148 billion).

Both figures included the value of land, which was US$3,2 billion (R56 billion). After lengthy negotiations, the government adjusted its figure to US$3,5 billion (R61 billion), a figure that is currently operational. Brent said that initially, improvements on his farm were valued at US$1,6 million (R28 million), but as the government was opposed to paying that amount, negotiations saw the payment reduced to US$800 000 (R14 million).

He said he had bought the farm in 1990 after getting a certificate from the government that it had no interest in that property, hence he could purchase it. He then took a loan from Standard Chartered Bank that he repaid over five years. Brent moved to Nigeria in 2009 with the hope of starting commercial farming there, but the expedition turned into a terrible flop due to a lack of promised finance and backing from the Nigerian government. “I left Nigeria after living in tents in the middle of the bush for a year,” he explained. He added that no amount of compensation would ever make up for the suffering he endured due to the loss of his home, business, and his only profession, farming. When he returned to Zimbabwe, he lived off savings and gratuity payments.

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