Whenever the topic of land expropriation in South Africa comes up, people immediately jump to the Zimbabwe comparison, so let’s go back to the beginning.

Colonists seized some of the best agricultural lands in Zimbabwe, which was largely the property of white farmers by the time the country gained independence in 1980.

Robert Mugabe’s government then carried out often violent evictions of 4 500 white farmers and redistributed the land to around 300 000 black families and the connected elite, many of whom now own multiple farms, reports Fin24.

None of this did the country any favours.

Now, almost 20 years later, former white commercial farmers in Zimbabwe have accepted the government’s offer of an interim payment of RTGS$53m (R238 million at current exchange rates).

If you’re wondering what that currency is, it’s the new real-time gross settlement dollar. One RTGS$ can buy R4,50, according to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.

In a statement the Commercial Farmers Union said they had to accept the advanced interim payment as some farmers were in financial distress.

“As this is a limited fund, it is hoped that those who are not in financial distress do not take it up so as to maximise the effect on others not so fortunate.”

The total bill could run into billions and the Zimbabwean government is working with international financial institutions on how best to fund the compensation.

IOL reports that President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government sees the paying of compensation to white farmers as a necessary step towards mending ties with the West.

The initial payments will target those in financial distress, while full compensation will be paid later.

“The registration process and list of farmers should be completed by the end of April 2019, after which the interim advance payments will be paid directly to former farm owners,” Zimbabwe’s ministries of finance and agriculture said in a joint statement on Monday.

They said the process to identify and register farmers for compensation was being undertaken the Commercial Farmers Union (CFU) and a committee representing the farmers.

The government maintains that it will only pay compensation for infrastructure and improvements on farms, and not for the land.

It’s still early in the process, so we’ll have to wait and see how it all plays out.

[source:fin24&iol]