DOHA:Mswati,an absolute Monarch,has appealed to the United Nations(UN) to provide more financial support so that his government can improve the lives of the people.
The multi-billionaire King known for his lavish lifestyle rules eSwatini,one of poorest countries in the world, he was addressing the 5th United Nations Conference for Least Developed Countries on Sunday.
Mswati further appealed for technical support to achieve the United Nation(UN)Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs).
“We now find ourselves facing daunting challenges in creating an enabled environment for our people to live in, as Eswatini has experienced a massive reduction in development aid assistance. We, therefore, appeal to the international community to give us more financial and technical support in order for us to achieve these (SDGs) targets,”said the King.
On another note, King Mswati told the UN that eSwatini was working towards establishing the national agriculture development fund.
The King said this fund will support smallholder farmers, including women and young and aspiring emaSwati, with skills and capital for green technologies and farming starter packs.
“The kingdom has also made significant efforts to develop knowledge-based systems for addressing poverty-related challenges,”said the King when delivering his speech that was also quoted by eSwatini Government online platforms.
Eswatini is a tiny Kingdom situated in Southern Africa with about 70% of the population living below the poverty line, the country is ruled by Mswati as an absolute Monarch.
Parliament,the media and other institutions that promote transparency and accountability are restricted from demanding accountability of public funds allegedly looted by the King and his royal family.
Members of Parliament(MPs),political activists and journalists who challenge the King on issues of democracy and accountability are arrested,tortured or even killed.
Human rights lawyer Thulani Maseko was assassinated allegedly,by Mswati’s State agents on the 21st January 2023 a few hours after the King threatened those calling for democracy.
MPs Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube who challenged Mswati are languishing in jail facing politically motivated terrorism charges.
HMK (on climate change): \"Although Eswatini only emits 0.007% of global carbon emissions, we have committed to climate change mitigation and adaptation through an ambitious nationally determined contribution (NDC). These projects are aimed at creating decent jobs for our people, which is one of the key targets for the SDGs.”
HMK (on ICT sector): \"The ICT sector plays an important role in creating future jobs, namely cloud computing, digital marketing, machine learning, artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and software development, among others.\"
HMK (on Eswatini Youth Empowerment Programme with UNDP): \"We believe this programme, which has the support of the private sector, will make a significant impact on job creation in the country.\"
His Majesty also met with the President of Zambia, H.E Haikande Hichilema, on the sidelines of the #LCD5.
King Mswati at the 5th UN Conference on Least Developed Countries(pic: Gov).