"This is a real step forward, so we are pleased, but there is a lot that needs fixing on the land, such as dams which are silted up. We will help wherever we can,” he said.

A surviving white farmer who asked not to be named said: “I only have a quarter of my farm left. But I am at peace that we will now be left alone. We don’t yet know what is in those leases, but I am feeling confident about the future.”

Nearly all of the remaining white farmers in Zimbabwe occupy only small portions of their original landholding. Most are growing tobacco, one of Zimbabwe’s top export earners.

It is unclear whether the extended leases will be followed by compensation for the evictions.

While Mr Mnangagwa has frequently said the land grab is “irreversible,” he has also repeatedly said he wants to pay compensation as spelled out in Zimbabwe's 2013 constitution.

Collectively, white farmers were forced to abandon more then 17 million acres of land as well as equipment, personal possessions, and livestock.