BY SABELO GWEBU
MBABANE– The budget for the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs has reached an all-time high of E85 million.
This shows a E16 million increase from the previous financial year’s E69 million. This was revealed by the Minister of Finance Neal Rijkenberg as he tabled the 2023/24 national budget in parliament last Friday morning.
Rijkenberg said he could not help but notice that every time His Majesty King Mswati III spoke of the youth in his speech from the Throne, there was a louder than normal “Bayethe” being shouted by all those present indicating that the welfare of the youth is very close to the hearts of all in leadership.
“The budget for the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs has increased from E69 million to E85 million. The amount of budget allocated to this Ministry is purely for auxiliary activities related to Sport and the Youth, and is in no way reflective of Governments full commitment to empower the youth,” he said.
He added that if one considers the budget holistically, the E900 million increase in the wage bill is mainly for the youth, the E286 million increase in scholarship is 100 percent for the youth, the E430 million increase in the Education budget is 100 percent for the youth. “These numbers are the true reflection of how this budget is focused on youth empowerment”.
