BY DELISA THWALA
MBABANE – The Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade Manqoba Khumalo says it is crucial to strengthen the MSME sector to promote Eswatini’s economic development efforts.
Khumalo was speaking during the Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day, celebrated all over the world today.
The MSME Day celebrations were collaboration between the Government, the private sector, the European Union (EU) and the International Trade Center (ITC).
During the same event, ITC presented a book titled “Discover Eswatini: the tales of Sustainability, which pays tribute to Eswatini’s entrepreneurs.
Minister Khumalo assured MSMEs that a Bill that seeks to address their challenges is underway and shall soon be passed into law.
“Although the past three years have been very challenging for the global economy and, in particular MSME businesses, as a country we still believe that MSMEs provide the best framework for a quick and explosive economic recovery,” he said.
“Therefore, it is crucial to strengthen these businesses to promote Eswatini’s economic development efforts,” he added.
The Minister further mentioned that, to that end, the Government has a toolbox of initiatives to support MSME businesses to enable them to thrive.
These include National Development Plans/Strategies, MSME Policies and several programmes that provide business support and financial support to MSMEs.
“Despite being small in size, the MSME sector in Eswatini still plays a crucial role in creating a competitive and resilient business environment, as well as driving the economic development of the country,” he said.
Worth noting is that, recent studies indicate that MSMEs have the potential to provide employment to up to 65% of the workforce and generate up to 50 percent of the national output.
“These small companies currently employ approximately 41 percent of the working age population thus catalyse economic growth by creating employment, developing entrepreneurship, reducing poverty and generally improving the livelihoods of the citizens of Eswatini,” said the Minister.
Meanwhile ITC Representative Thulile Zwane said In this regressing state of global economies, MSMEs possess the potential to sustain economies through generation of income and providing employment opportunities, and if well nurtured they can drive the country’s economy.
“ITC is working with the EU, MSME Unit & Government to create an environment that will enable MSMEs to thrive not only locally but also beyond the borders of the Kingdom, and propel economic growth in the country,” said Zwane.
His sentiments were shortly echoed by MSME Representative Khulekani Msweli who said : “MSMEs are the backbone of economies and livelihoods of rural communities. Big business and Government tend to be late payers who lead to businesses being closed down due to being unable to service their creditors.
