After four years of debate Zimbabwe finally has a draft constitution that will be put to citizens Saturday in a referendum, culminating a process that has gobbled up 50 million dollars.

The new constitution proposes modest reforms to basic rights but, significantly, would not hinder President Robert Mugabe from running for another term as head of the state he has governed for nearly 33 years, first as premier and then as president.

All three major political parties in the country are backing the charter, which is expected to easily pass. Some rights groups are pushing for a "no" vote, but admit they lack the funds to launch a proper campaign.

"The draft constitution is no better than the current one," said Lovemore Madhuku, the head of the National Constitutional Assembly, one of the groups that opposes the text.

Foreign powers keen to see stability restored to the southern African nation after a decade of turmoil are demanding the new constitution be in place before highly-anticipated elections later this year for parliament and president.

The autocratic Mugabe, 89, who has been at the helm of the country since independence in 1980, has urged his Zanu-PF party members to vote for the new supreme law, as has his rival-turned-coalition partner, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.

"The draft constitution is a giant step forward," said Tsvangirai, who heads the majority faction of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) party.

The organization of the vote has been haphazard. Many people admit to having a sketchy knowledge of the text.

"I have not read the draft. It seems the political parties want us to vote for it. I am not sure I will do that. I might not vote actually," Mark Cassimo, a student at University of Zimbabwe, told dpa.

Others say they will simply follow the dictates of the major parties.

Election officials say they expect no more than 5 million people will participate in the referendum, out of a population of about 12 million.

The new constitution offers more rights to women, but homosexuality will remain illegal and the death penalty stays on the books.

The charter also limits a president to two terms, though that latter clause will not apply retroactively, leaving Mugabe clear to seek reelection.

Africa's oldest ruler has repeatedly said he will run for president again this year, despite growing concerns about his health and some frustration at the length of time he has already spent in office.

The president himself admitted recently that he is "lonely" at the top, with many of his friends from the struggle for independence dead already. He dubbed some of his cabinet ministers "children" and said he had little in common with them.

"You can't discuss with them things that happened in the 1930s or even (the) 1950s... You take my cabinet as it is, there is no one I can talk to about how we used to approach girls or we would go to this and that place, riding bicycles," Mugabe said.

The last general election in 2008 descended into violence, which largely targeted supporters of the MDC, then squarely in the opposition. Some 200 people were killed in attacks that the MDC blamed on state security forces and Zanu-PF supporters.

To restore calm regional powers pushed Mugabe and Tsvangirai into a shaky coalition deal, which is set to run out at the elections.

But brute force remains a feature of Zimbabwean politics.

Last month, riot police broke up a peaceful Tsvangirai rally called to explain and promote the draft constitution.

There is concern that the violence could intensify if the MDC campaigns against Zanu-PF in a few months time.

There is also the question of who will pay for the election.

Zimbabwe has admitted it does not have the cash to hold proper polls and is asking the donors for a dig out.

The international community, led by the United Nations, paid for the drafting of the new constitution. But there has been little movement so far on funding for the election.