BY BANELE MAGONGO
MBABANE – Eswatini has set a goal to join the top 10 of the medium human development group of countries.
This is seen as a lofty yet attainable ambition that rests on the pillars of sustainable economic development, social justice, and political stability.
According to a review and outlook report by the Ministry of Economic Planning and Development Eswatini’s National Development Strategy (NDS) envisions the country reaching the top 10 of medium human development countries, anchored in sustainable economic growth, social justice, and political stability. The NDS, coupled with other development frameworks, such as the National Development Plan, the Sustainable Development Goals, and regional frameworks, upholds macroeconomic stability as a key driver of economic development.
It is stated that the end goal to be achieved by the country is to promote wealth creation, sustainability, and fair resource distribution. Following the elapse of the NDS in 2022, the government is developing a successor development strategy, which will determine the country’s future development path. Evidence based research and emulation of successful development models will be used as a key guide in the development process of this successor 11 Government development frameworks include the strategic five-year government action plans.
The National Development Plan (NDP), a 5-year rolling plan, outlines the government’s efforts to revive the economy by prioritizing economic and social transformation with good governance at its core. With good governance as its anchor, it is stated that the NDP seeks to achieve macro-fiscal management, an effective and efficient public service, peace, political stability, and national unity, ensuring that every citizen’s livelihood improves.
According to information sourced from Wikipedia, currently, Eswatini has a human development index (HDI) value of 0.610 and it is placed at number 142 of countries with medium human development, together with Namibia. Benin is the last of those countries, with an HDI of 0.504 and it is placed at number 173. The first country to appear among the medium human development is Venezuela, with an HDI value of 0.699 and the last one of the top 10 countries is Iraq, with an HDI value of 0.673.
Venezuela sits at number 119 of the list of the 193 countries provided in this list, according to their development status. The first country is Switzerland and it is listed as the most developed country. The European land-locked country has an HDI value of 0.967, with the last one being Somalia. The East African country has an HDI value of 0.380. The top 10 medium human development countries include Venezuela, Morocco, Bolivia, Nauru, Gabon, Suriname, Bhutan, Tajikistan, El Salvador, and Iraq.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) further states that the cut-off points for human development are HDI of less than 0.550 for low human development, 0.550–0.699 for medium human development, 0.700–0.799 for high human development and 0.800 or greater for very high human development.
Human development index of Eswatini increased from 0.44 index in 2003 to 0.61 index in 2022, growing at an average annual rate of 1.78 percent.
