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PRIORITISE YOUTH JOBS, SUGAR PRICING - MINISTER

13/04/2022 08:24:00 Ashmond Nzima

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MBABANE - Eswatini is of the view that for SACU to move to the next level of industrialisation, the sharing and harnessing of available resources in the region is very critical.

This was said by the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade, Manqoba Khumalo, when addressing delegates during the ongoing two-day Southern African Customs Union (SACU) Ministerial Investment Roundtable in Gaborone, Botswana yesterday. Eswatini is a member of SACU alongside Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa. The theme of the event is , ‘Positioning SACU as industrial, investment, manufacturing and innovation hub for the African continent and beyond.’ In his address, the minister said addressing the availability and the competitive pricing of sugar was welcome.

Challenge

“As we are all facing the same challenge of youth unemployment, let us industrialise in a manner that will create jobs in all member States. “SACU’s industrialisation strategy would not go down in history as having succeeded if the industrialisation of one member State negatively impacts another economically,” said the minister. Youth unemployement in Eswatini is estimated at 58.2 per cent. With regard to sugar, it was recently reported, especially in Namibian media that due to riots, strikes and reduced sugar harvests, South Africa and Eswatini- the only two sugar producers in SACU have run out of refined sugar before the start of new sugar harvest season kicked off. The minister stressed that Eswatini was looking forward to the implementation of the outcomes of the investment roundtable. “We believe that the implementation will bring greater regional integration, economic diversification and industrialisation in SACU by expanding markets in the priority sectors, as well as drawing together capacities from all member States.

Greater

This will require a greater degree of specialisation and competitiveness in SACU member States so as to take full advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), which has all the attributes of being a wider captive and domestic market for us,” he highlighted. The minister, on the other hand, acknowledged the role played by the private sector in economic development of the region, saying the private sector was the custodian of the proposed cross border projects. “We believe that the private sector with the support of member States will take the lead in the regional value chains,” he added. The minister further shared that to make the environment conducive for the private sector, under the development of infrastructure to support value chains, the Government of Eswatini, through the National Agricultural Marketing Board (NAMBoard), constructed a number of pack houses across the country to enhance cold chain management and to improve turnaround time for farmers.

Complementary to this programme, to increase production and yield under irrigation, government in collaboration with the Eswatini Water and Agricultural Development Enterprise (ESWADE), is currently engaged in expanding dam construction in strategic places in the country covering a target population of 120 000 people, including small holder farmers in an irrigated area measuring 35 200 hectares.

Implementation

“We in Eswatini align ourselves with the view that the implementation of our cross border projects will not be possible without a suitable, inclusive and participatory funding model.
“We believe such a model, once identified under the work programme, will enable us as SACU to achieve our industrialisation aspirations and ambitions,” the minister said. Meanwhile, the first-ever SACU Investment Roundtable will further look into investment and export opportunities in the priority sectors in the region. There will further be discussions on enhancing competitiveness of the trading environment in SACU. Botswana President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi headlines the list of guests.