BY KWANELE TSABEDZE
LOBAMBA – The highly anticipated National Dialogue has been allocated E30 million in the 2023 National Budget Estimates.
This was revealed by Minister of Finance Neal Rijkenberg when delivering his fifth National Budget Speech at the House of Assembly in Lobamba.
“As a nation, we have experienced unrest and politically motivated acts of violence resulting in the loss of lives and damage to property. Government has responded appropriately and proportionately to these threats and it has called for all stakeholders to denounce violence, constructively engage and work collectively to establish a framework for dialogue,” began the Minister when addressing the National Dialogue budget.
“This requires an immediate end to violence, an uninterrupted period of peace and stability to ensure all Emaswati can safely and meaningfully contribute to this process, because unless this is achieved we will continue to fail to thrive as a nation and as an economy. Simply put, unless the violence stops, we cannot rebuild our economy, create jobs and deliver services,” observed Minister Rijkenberg.
“In this regard, the budget is providing 30 million to facilitate the national dialogue,” announced the Minister. The 2023 National Budget Speech and deliberations on the 2023 National Budget Estimates are currently ongoing at the House of Assembly.
