ENERGY - THE NEXT FRONTIER

This month the nation celebrates His Majesty’s 54th birthday and 36 years on the throne as the sovereign of the Kingdom of Eswatini.

This is a celebration of His Majesty’s astute leadership and vision to transform the country’s economy into a thriving hub for business. The country boasts of a good road infrastructure which compares well with comparator countries. An international airport of reputable standards, an international convention centre and five-star hotel, factory shells scattered all over the country. The list is really long and my 800 words cannot do justice to that. I note as well the strides government has taken in electrifying the whole of Eswatini.

According to the World Bank data as of 2019, 77 per cent of the country was electrified. Recent statistics show that the electrification rates are now hovering at around 90 per cent, all impressive strides the country has taken under the leadership of the sovereign, most of which have been a vision of the Crown. Eswatini is, therefore, ready for business and we need to package her very well to start reaping the gains from all these investments, we need to find a competitive edge and unlock Eswatini to the rest of the world.

Next frontier

As the Crown unlocks his 54th chapter, we pray to the heavens and ancestors to continue showering the sovereign with the wisdom needed to steer this beautiful kingdom of ours into economic prosperity, with broad-based growth. We pray for wisdom on the Monarch to lead us into new frontiers and unlock greater heights for the nation. My wish list is; may His Majesty usher us into an era of energy sufficiency, this will further bolster and galvanise growth in Eswatini leveraging on all the investments that have been made in infrastructure and the technology sector. Energy ranks high among considerations for businesses seeking to open shop in a territory. A consistent supply of energy and reliable supply of energy is crucial for the efficient running of commerce; and for our economy to thrive, we need to tackle that frontier and I believe that if the nation holds together and with the prudent leadership of His Majesty we shall soon mount the Eswatini flag on this frontier.

Power generation – a path to energy sufficiency

In my previous pieces of work I may have stated that the country has a budget allocation for power stations. Let me clarify that statement, there is no budget allocation for a power station. However, there is a lot of scoping works and efforts to ensure that the country is energy self-sufficient in the near future. Government is weighing alternatives including scoping works on thermal power generation and private independent power generation to bolster the domestic grid. A path towards energy sufficiency will have to include all options available to ensure that it is provided in a cost effective manner. We need to reduce the financing requirements from the public purse and pursue public-private partnerships in the development of the domestic grid. Also, there is need to open up the energy sector to independent power producers and private sector to play a role in energy generation in the country. We need an enabling environment for the private sector to explore green energy and other forms of clean energy to complement efforts of the State. And we believe that with the right leadership and the wisdom of age, His Majesty will lead the nation into this utopia.

Strategic oil reserves

Current economic conditions are revealing our vulnerabilities to external energy shocks, the current price of Brent Crude and the ongoing war in Ukraine. We note His Majesty’s vision of erecting strategic oil reserves in the country. Reserves ensure that we are able to have a buffer that we can release into the economy to help anchor domestic fuel prices when we, in the future, are faced with such shocks as the one we are facing. Through the leadership of the His Majesty, we will attain this energy sufficiency and buffer stock of fuel to help ease the economic woes that are brought by uncontrollable fuel hikes. This is the strategic leadership that the country needs, and we only pray for more wisdom on the sovereign to help the nation navigate economic configurations of the 21st century.

Powering economic development

We are confident in the efforts of government and the leadership of His Majesty to usher us into a new frontier of energy self-sufficiency. As we unlock Eswatini to the world, let us strive to unlock her true potential. When we say Eswatini is ready for business let us ensure that we are indeed ready for business and are perpetually powered. Energy is a critical enabler to economic development, and the vision and leadership displayed by the King and government to ensure energy sufficiency really is unrivalled. If as a nation we bend together and see it forward we may be in a position to grow the economy at rates that will create jobs for emaSwati. Ensuring that we also invest in green energy will ensure sustainable growth for generations to come.

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