BY KWANELE TSABEDZE
LOZITHA – From Kingdom to Kingdom.
This is the turn of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) Chairmanship, as His Majesty King Mswati III has officially handed over the reins to the Kingdom of Lesotho.
His Majesty made the official handover today at the 8th Summit of the SACU Heads of State and Government held at Mandvulo Grand Hall at Lozitha. The Kingdom of Lesotho’s Chairmanship of the customs union is set to take effect on July 15, 2023.
“We are looking forward to the Kingdom of Lesotho hosting us next year,” said His Majesty in anticipation of the next Summit.
The handover follows successful meetings of the SACU member states this week, which culminated in today’s summit. His Majesty urged the delegates to make the SACU a success story.
In responding to the Kingdom of Lesotho’s new responsibility, Prime Minister Samuel Matekane of the Kingdom of Lesotho thanked His Majesty for his leadership during Eswatini’s term in chairing the SACU.
“His Majesty King Mswati III has ably facilitated our discussions today and provided excellent leadership to our organisation during Eswatini’s tenure as the Chair of SACU. We thank him for the wisdom and guidance that has enabled us to reach the key milestones reported to the Summit today and setting out a good outlook for the future,” said Prime Minister Matekane.
“I can only assure you that as the new Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Lesotho, who is receiving the gauntlet from His Majesty King Mswati III today, my fidelity to the principles underpinning SACU and commitment to contributing to the growth of our Union shall be without reproach,” said the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister reassured Heads of States that the Kingdom of Lesotho will continue to improve the achievements of the organisation so far by implementing the current Strategic plan as inherited from the Kingdom of Eswatini’s chairship.
“We welcome the progress made to date towards the implementation of the Strategic Plan 2022-2027. We expect that much more will be achieved within a shorter period when decisions reached today are implemented in a well-coordinated fashion. There is a saying in my language that, “Tlou ha e hloloe ke moroalo”, literally translated as “an elephant is never defeated by its load”. I, therefore, believe that as SACU, we have what it takes to succeed,” said Prime Minister Matekane.
He took a moment to also thank emaSwati for their hospitality.
“Allow me to take this opportunity to convey our gratitude and appreciation to His Majesty, King Mswati, The Third, and His Government, as well as the people of the Kingdom of Eswatini, for their usual warm hospitality and excellent facilities availed to us including the exceptional arrangements made for this Summit,” extolled the Prime Minister.
Prime Minister Matekane concluded his acceptance remarks on behalf of the Kingdom of Lesotho by inviting the delegates to the next SACU summit.
“On behalf of the Government and people of the Kingdom of Lesotho, I am pleased to extend an invitation to His Majesty and Your Excellencies, to the 9th SACU Summit to be held in Lesotho in June 2024,” said Prime Minister Matekane.
