Eswatini’s FM reveals economic recovery plan in presence of AfDB chief Adesina

The Kingdom of Eswatini has boarded on a recovery plan to combat to come out of the economic slump.

Neal Rijkenberg, the Finance Minister of Eswatini, a landlocked monarchy in southern Africa, has recently made the comment during an official visit by Akinwumi Adesina, President of African Development Bank. According to Neal Rijkenberg, the new government that took office after elections in November last year had adopted a strategic roadmap to guide the economic recovery.

"We believe there's not a problem we can't solve … We believe that we've turned a corner. The indicators … are turning from an unsustainable future to a sustainable future," Neal Rijkenberg said at a press conference.

The recovery plan applied to recover the economic slump in Eswatini has included tackling expenditure and the budget deficit. "The private sector is the engine that drives the economy forward," he said, adding that government support would ensure the necessary legislative framework.

African Development Bank's chief Akinwumi Adesina was pleased with the results of the Lower Usuthu irrigation project (LUSIP), which have allowed more than 20,000 smallholder farmers to upscale their mostly sugar cane crops into commercial farming. At its launch in 2003, the surrounding area consisted of a single street and a few houses. Since then, as a result of the agricultural boom, Siphofaneni has become a fully-fledged town.

"You can feel the impact of the work of the African Development Bank, and that is what I came to see," Adesina said while expressing his gladness on the progress.

The African Development Bank contributed financing of around USD 13.04 million to LUSIP, amounting to around 11 percent of the cost. Phase two of the project is still in development in which the Bank is the lead financier contributing USD 55 million. The Bank is also processing a grant of USD 2 million to prepare the Mkhondvo-Ngwavuma Water Augmentation Programme, which is expected to be a game changer in the southern region of Eswatini and across the borders in Mozambique and South Africa.