By Mduduzi Hlophe

MBABANE: Mayibongwe Masango, the Secretary General of the Swaziland Democratic Nurses Union (SWADNU) said the opening of the factory that produces Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) would not solve the shortage of PPE in public hospitals since government was struggling with paying suppliers.

This comes after the opening of the PPE factory in Matsapha by Senator Themba Masuku, the Acting Prime Minister on Friday.

Speaking to this Swaziland News, the Secretary General said even though the PPE would be produced in the country, government would still have to pay for them. But as the situation stands, government was struggling with paying suppliers.

“We have seen another company producing these PPE’s and exporting all of its stock mainly because government doesn’t want to pay the suppliers. Even now we might not be sure if the factory will supply government with the PPE, these companies are profit driven and they won’t supply us with the PPE if government is still struggling with paying suppliers. As a union, we can only celebrate a sound health budget that will solve the shortage of drugs, medical equipment and PPE in public hospitals, this factory alone will not solve the current crisis”, he said.

Speaking during the opening of the Texray Facemasks Production in Matsapha, Senator Themba Masuku, the Acting Prime Minister said the factory aligned itself with government’s Post COVID-19 Economic Recovery Plan which puts emphasis on a private sector led economic growth and creating decent and sustainable jobs for emaSwati.

“More importantly, we have been pleased to note that the Factory will be expanding to producing other critical PPE, whose usage particularly by the health sector, will go beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. The importance of having a consistent supply of PPE and indeed other critical health tools has been emphasised by COVID-19 and government has learnt from these lessons”, said the Acting Prime Minister.