Packaging company, Nampak Zimbabwe Limited (Nampak) continues to battle for control of lost estates.
Companies and former white landowners lost farms during Zimbabwe’s land reform programme in the early 2000s and the Bilateral Investment Protection and Promotion Agreements (BIPPAs) which protected corporates from losing estates was violated in the land grab.
Nampak, Group Managing Director, John Van Gend said, “We continue to actively engage with the relevant authorities to regain effective control over our estates.
“Our intention is to rehabilitate them for timber and agricultural purposes in line with the National Development Strategy (NDS1).”
Nampak is taking advantage of the current government’s plot to redress the problems caused by the land reform programme, which may result in land formerly protected by BIPPA getting back to the former owners.
Van Gend says, “We maintained our engagement with the relevant Authorities to regain effective control of our Estates in terms of the BIPPA agreement with South Africa.”
“Our intention is to rehabilitate them for timber and agricultural purposes, in support of the current Government policy thrust in this direction.”
“We remain hopeful for the restoration of title or long term leases which will provide the security required for new investment and job creation,” the Group Managing Director says.
The Nampak Managing Director raised concerns that the group’s performance gains made in the first quarter are unlikely to be sustained in the second quarter owing to the lockdown, the tobacco packaging off-season and lower seasonal demand.
“The outlook for the rest of the year will depend on the success of the agricultural season, the possible impact of further COVID-19 lockdowns and the measures that the authorities take to tackle the macro-economic challenges,” Van Gend says.
