BY KWANELE TSABEDZE
MBABANE – His Majesty King Mswati III has returned with more good news from his international trip to the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
True to his nature, His Majesty took time to host a Eswatini Investment Forum while in New York for the UNGA. The Investment Forum was part of Eswatini’s deliberate development agenda to reimagine the future of development and reshape its investment pathways.
His Majesty King Mswati III returned from the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York on Friday the 30th of September. Reporting on His Majesty’s trip this morning was Government Spokesperson Alpheous Nxumalo.
“What we saw leaders touch on a lot, as well as His Majesty speaking with a compelling voice at the UN podium on it, was the issue of problems created by COVID. A lot of things were delayed while the UN has a mandate to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) for 2030.
“These problems were discussed in the open. As the theme was saying, there should be faster ways to achieve the SDG’s now. Even though COVID came and destroyed a lot in the world, leaders agreed in a united positive voice which says that even though there were challenges, the agreements on the SDG’s are still possible to achieve,” said Nxumalo during an interview on the Kusile Breakfast show.
The government spokesperson also mentioned that leaders at the UN agreed that the world should return back to normal post-COVID. However, he noted that most world leaders encouraged everyone to exercise caution because COVID-19 is not fully suppressed in the population. He added that a number of African leaders called for a quicker distribution of health solutions in cases such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking on His Majesty King Mswati III’s speech at the UN, Nxumalo remarked that His Majesty noted that the Government is prioritising mitigating issues of standard of living for the most vulnerable.
“Following that speech, His Majesty met with the UNDP during a seminar, where he was also discussing the reports on Eswatini’s poverty line. His Majesty is very concerned about this so he wants to know the accuracy of poverty statistics in Eswatini; and if they are accurate, how can the world assist Eswatini in reducing poverty numbers, and where as a country we need to loosen or tighten things”, Nxumalo added.
“His Majesty had a vision to meet with the UNDP Regional Director for Africa (who is also UN Assistant Secretary General, Ahunna Eziakonwa). The UNDP leader had visited His Majesty the King when he was in Tunisia for the TICAD conference. The seminar is a result of those engagements. The seminar went very well, it was attended by a number of New York businesspeople. It was also streamed on social media, especially Youtube: the UN watched it largely, and Wall Street watched it largely,” Nxumalo said.
“What’s good is that every time His Majesty hosts a business seminar, there are always investors who come from that country and have invested in Eswatini to corroborate based on their experience. In New York, the director for US Distillers, the big alcohol exporting producer in Big Bend, testified that he has a great productive and profitable experience working in Eswatini. He added that he is returning to diversify by venturing into Agriculture,” Nxumalo revealed.
The Government spokesperson added that the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade made a presentation on what aspects of the economy are most in need of investment in Eswatini; these include energy, tourism, as well as cattle production. “They have interest in all the sectors, so we are expecting them as Government, as His Majesty has spoken,” Nxumalo said.
