BY BANELE MAGONGO
MBABANE – About E40 million will be needed over the five years to rehabilitate and protect wetlands in Mbabane.
This was said by Mbabane Mayor Vusi Tembe yesterday during the protection of a wetland in Manzana, Mbabane. The event was done by the European Union in Eswatini, Eswatini Environment Authority (EEA), Yibutse Green Action, Manzana Community, school children, volunteers and others.
The event was part of the EU’s global campaign, ForOurPlanet, which aims to encourage action from citizens and civil society to build resilience to climate change. The event was organised by Yibutse Green Action, a local organisation dedicated to environmental protection and conservation.
Tembe appreciated the stakeholders, particularly the EU, for making the event a success. “We applaud the EU for supporting Council’s environmental and recreation programmes such as waste reduction and construction of a skate park at the Coronation Park. We look forward to more partnerships in the future,” Tembe said.
According to Tembe, the city of Mbabane has a total area of 571 hectares of wetlands, which account for five percent of the city’s total land area. The wetlands are made up of riverbeds, riverbanks, and pools with restricted water flow.
The mayor noted that over 50 percent of the wetland area had already been affected by human activities, including construction, the spread of invasive alien species, illegal dumping, and pollution. This has had a detrimental impact on the health of the wetlands.
Yibutse Green Action Executive Director Musa Ndlangamandla noted that while there were many efforts being made to preserve and restore wetlands, a lack of awareness among communities, especially youth, was a major challenge. He explained that this lack of awareness led to increased dumping of waste, the spread of invasive plant species, and other forms of human encroachment on wetlands. Ndlangamandla stated that Yibutse would continue to forge partnerships to address this issue across the country.
