The Zimbabwean government has received $30 million in dividends from the Canadile and Mbada diamonds companies – the two firms currently operating in Marange diamond fields.

The dividend payment follows a concerned statement by Finance Minister Tendai Biti, suggesting the money could not be accounted for.

According to The Zimbabwean, Mbada paid Harare $24,438,457, while Canadile paid $5,568,174. Harare's shareholding in Canadile and Mbada is represented through the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC).

The schedule indicates that ZMDC received a total of $19,388,721.17 comprising a dividend of $15,540,627.29, depletion fees of $2,294,031.15 and a $1,554,062.73 non-resident shareholders tax on dividend.

The controversial Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe was paid $401,455.45 while the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) received $60,218.32 in value added tax and $4,588,062.30 in royalties. The Minerals Marketing Corporation of Zimbabwe received $5,049,736.07 from the diamond miners.

The payment was made just two weeks after Zimbabwe auctioned diamond harvested from Marange, after getting a long awaited Kimberley Process permit to do so. The government sold 900,000 carats of diamonds, raising a reported $45 million.

Revenue from future Zimbabwe diamond sales could go a long way to providing much needed cash for the Harare government that has failed to attract meaningful financial support from Western governments and international financial institutions.

Mbada and Canadile are joint ventures between the ZMDC and some little known South African private companies. However critics say the diamond firms are fronting powerful political and military elites close to Mugabe.