White Zimbabwean farmers whose land was seized during violent state-backed occupations more than two decades ago are seeking assistance from the administration of US President Donald Trump to recover compensation valued at about R56.67 billion. According to Bloomberg, a US lobbying firm with close links to Trump, Mercury Public Affairs LLC, has agreed to represent the farmers’ interests in Washington without charge, as disclosed in a recent Foreign Agents Registration Act filing.
The firm’s involvement connects the dispute to a broader political narrative in the United States that alleges discrimination against White minorities in southern Africa. As reported by Bloomberg, Mercury has senior figures with past roles in Trump’s campaign and transition team, strengthening the farmers’ belief that their case may find a receptive audience in the current administration. The move also reflects long-standing claims by Trump that White farmers in the region face systematic persecution, an argument widely rejected by independent investigations but politically resonant among some US lawmakers.
Zimbabwe’s land seizures began in 2000, following the defeat of former president Robert Mugabe in a constitutional referendum. Farms owned mainly by White commercial producers were taken over by groups aligned with the ruling party, with thousands of farmers forced off their land and several deaths recorded among farmers and workers. The policy was framed as a correction of colonial land imbalances, but it triggered international sanctions and isolated Zimbabwe from global capital markets. At the time, the country was a major exporter of tobacco and horticultural products and played a significant role in regional agricultural trade.
In 2020, the government under President Emmerson Mnangagwa agreed to compensate displaced farmers with a package valued at $3.5 billion as part of efforts to restore relations with creditors and re-enter international financial systems. However, payments have not materialised. According to Reuters, Zimbabwe’s failure to settle arrears has undermined negotiations with multilateral lenders and stalled economic recovery initiatives backed by international partners.
Republican lawmakers in the US have already moved to link financial support for Zimbabwe to the compensation issue. Legislation introduced in Congress seeks to prevent the country from accessing funding from institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank until the compensation commitment is honoured. The bill has cleared committee stages but has not yet been passed into law, leaving the farmers’ claims dependent on continued political pressure rather than formal financial enforcement.
The lobbying effort is being coordinated through OB Projects Management Corp on behalf of Zimbabwe’s Property and Farm Compensation Association, alongside other farming and valuation bodies. Disagreements have emerged among farming groups over representation, with some organisations saying they were included without authorisation. Requests for comment from Zimbabwean authorities and the lobbying firm have so far produced no formal response.
Zimbabwe’s debt burden remains a major obstacle. According to World Bank data, the country is in arrears of more than $21 billion to international and bilateral creditors, including the World Bank, the African Development Bank and European lenders. These arrears prevent access to new loans and keep Zimbabwe excluded from most multilateral financing frameworks.
For the displaced farmers, the appeal to Washington reflects frustration with domestic negotiations and limited leverage over Harare’s fiscal priorities. For Zimbabwe, the renewed international focus on the land compensation issue risks complicating already fragile efforts to normalise relations with creditors and attract foreign investment, keeping one of the country’s most divisive historical policies firmly in the global spotlight.