BY MBONGENI NDLELA
MATSAPHA – Eswatini Beverages continues to be one of the exemplary key players in the economy of Eswatini. One example is how the company has spent over E45 million on local suppliers from 2021.
This was revealed by Eswatini Beverages Country Director Mpho Maloka, during the Minister of Commerce’s most recent tour of the company. Maloka said revealed that “We support the economy through the value chain. We utilise over 120 local suppliers and do direct business with 512 businesses. We believe in really empowering businesses. For example, from 2021, we were able to spend over E45 Million on local suppliers.”
Eswatini Beverages is one of the country’s oldest manufacturing companies and was partially burnt by arsonists during the June 2021 civil unrest, suffering damages in the region of E38.5 Million. During the visit, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade Manqoba Khumalo reassured the company that the government will continue to work closely with the private sector to navigate the current economic conditions for the better.
Minister Khumalo remarked, “Our role as Government is to protect investment by creating a conducive environment for business to operate and prosper. We truly appreciate the resilience that Eswatini Beverages has shown throughout the recent challenges.”
He added “Eswatini Beverages is amongst the companies that are an important driver of employment as more than 15 000 livelihoods benefit from the company’s value chain; upstream & downstream. The business itself provides good jobs to close to 200 employees and is also a significant tax contributor to the economy of the country.”
The tour was throughout the company, as the minister experienced the current operations of the company. He reassured Eswatini Beverage employees that “Government is aware of the economic challenges & their effects on business & consumers. We are currently witnessing unprecedented inflationary pressures on the global economy which we are also not immune to as a country.”
