The Government has offered to settle a US$3.5 billion land compensation deal with white former farmers over 10 years.
When the agreement was signed in 2020, the government initially wanted to offer payment terms of 20 years but has since decided to expedite the process, reported Bloomberg.
Since the signing of the deal, the government has repeatedly missed repayment deadlines.
Addressing reporters on Thursday on the sidelines of a meeting in the capital, Harare, to discuss the country’s debt, Finance and Economic Development Minister Mthuli Ncube, said:
We are moving toward the quick payment of former farm owners as most of them are not young. We are now front-loading the payments.
Ncube said the compensation will be financed through a Treasury bond, which will have prescribed-asset status and not be liable to any form of taxation as a way to entice investors.
He said farmers will hold a referendum on the matter soon and the bond will be issued once outstanding details are finalised.