diff --git a/pkgs/applications/editors/emacs/elisp-packages/melpa-packages.nix b/pkgs/applications/editors/emacs/elisp-packages/melpa-packages.nix
index 0b378079f542..1c04ae5c8be7 100644
--- a/pkgs/applications/editors/emacs/elisp-packages/melpa-packages.nix
+++ b/pkgs/applications/editors/emacs/elisp-packages/melpa-packages.nix
@@ -597,11 +597,13 @@ let
             export EZMQ_LIBDIR=$(mktemp -d)
             make
           '';
-          nativeBuildInputs = old.nativeBuildInputs ++ [
+          nativeBuildInputs = old.nativeBuildInputs or [ ] ++ [
             pkgs.autoconf
             pkgs.automake
             pkgs.pkg-config
             pkgs.libtool
+          ];
+          buildInputs = old.buildInputs or [ ] ++ [
             (pkgs.zeromq.override { enableDrafts = true; })
           ];
           postInstall = (old.postInstall or "") + "\n" + ''