Briefing Paper

Zimbabwe’s Contested Large Scale Land-Based Investment: The Chisumbanje Ethanol Project

“This policy brief presents the example of a biofuels production project and its value chain to argue that there is a need for a land and investment policy to guide communities, investors and stakeholders. The expansion of commercial sugarcane farming and the establishment of an ethanol refinery at Chisumbanje in Zimbabwe’s Chipinge District present both opportunities and risks for rural people in the area. Without clarity on land tenure, investors are also faced with challenges when deciding the extent to which they can put their money into agriculture. When policy is blurred, as is the current situation in Zimbabwe, it may create opportunities for some local people to benefit, while at the same time leading to dispossession and marginalisation of
others.”