Supreme Court orders registration of Crest Breeders’ land grab as company pushes for compensation

THE Supreme Court has ruled in favour of Crest Breeders International (Pvt) Ltd, ordering the registration of its compensation agreement with the Government of Zimbabwe over the compulsory acquisition of its 1,057-hectare property and criticising the lower court for revisiting a matter that had already been concluded.

In a ruling delivered on October 30, 2025, Justices George Chiweshe, Chinembiri Bhunu, and Joseph Musakwa allowed the appeal with costs on the legal practitioner and client scale, setting aside a 2022 Administrative Court decision that had dismissed the company’s application.

Chiweshe, writing for the court, said the matter was “res judicata,” having already been determined by the Supreme Court in an earlier judgment. He said the lower court “erred in entertaining a matter with regards to which it had previously rendered a determination.”

“Not only was the court a quo functus officio, it disregarded the doctrine of stare decisis by purporting to overturn the decision of this court concerning the same parties, the same facts and the same cause of action,” said Chiweshe.

The case involved Crest Breeders’ former property, the remaining extent of Saturday Retreat in Harare, which the government sought to compulsorily acquire in 2013 under the Land Acquisition Act. Following objections, the company and government reached an agreement in which Crest Breeders would retain 407 hectares and be compensated for the remainder. Occupants of the land were to pay four United States dollars per square metre for the portions they occupied.

The agreement was initially approved by the Administrative Court and confirmed by the Supreme Court. However, a group of 11 settlers later challenged the registration, claiming the deal was fraudulent and unfair. In 2022, the Administrative Court sided with the settlers, a decision which has now been overturned.

The Supreme Court said the settlers had no legitimate claim to the property or the agreement.

“If truth be told, the core respondents are illegal settlers, with no legitimate claim to the appellant’s property,” he said.

“They were not privy to the agreement nor were they adversely affected by its terms.”

He said the respondents had no locus standi to challenge the deal since they were neither parties to the agreement nor recognised beneficiaries of the land reform programme.

“The core respondents embarked from the very beginning on a futile exercise to assert what they perceived to be their rights,” he said.

The court reaffirmed the State’s right to acquire private land in the public interest upon payment of compensation.

“The sovereign State of Zimbabwe has eminent domain over all private property within its territory and can acquire such property in the public interest against payment of compensation.”

The judges ordered that the memorandum of agreement between Crest Breeders and the Government of Zimbabwe be registered in terms of the Administrative Court (Land Acquisition) Rules of 1998.

They also ordered the settlers to pay costs of the appeal on the legal practitioner and client scale.

“Despite glaring shortcomings, the core respondents persisted with their claims, thereby putting the appellant unnecessarily out of pocket. The appellant’s request for costs on the attorney and client scale was meritorious,” the court ruled.

Crest Breeders was represented by Advocate Lewis Uriri and T.S. Nyawo of Nyawo Ruzive Attorneys, while the Ministry of Lands was represented by L.T. Muradzikwa.

The settlers were represented by J. Koto of Koto & Company.

   NewZimbabwe