BY BANELE MAGONGO
EZULWINI – Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority (EIPA) has renewed its commitment to help the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade in bringing foreign direct investments (FDI) into Eswatini.
The authority made this commitment today (Wednesday, August 21, 2024) at Royal Villas, Ezulwini, during the investment policy validation workshop. The workshop, which will create the precedent environment for attracting and admitting investors into Eswatini, was made possible by EIPA, through the Ministry of Commerce Industry and Trade with support from the European Union (EU) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Secretariat.
Executive Head, Investment Promotion at EIPA Martin Masilela explained that the commitment would help in bringing many investors into the country. The investors would create jobs for Emaswati and help alleviate unemployment in the country. He said this was one of the focal areas that Government needed to tackle.
Emaswati made it clear last year during Sibaya that unemployment was one of the core problems that were affecting them. This then became clear to the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade that it had to work around the clock in bringing investors to create jons in the country, using EIPA, which was established to do just that.
The validation process, according to Masilela, guided the adoption of the Eswatini National Policy on Investment. He described it as a crucial step towards further enhancing the quality of investment that was brought into Eswatini for the creation of jobs and ultimately economic development.
He commended the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade for its guidance in drafting this document and for their continued support in bringing the process to this point. He acknowledged the support received from the EU and SADC Secretariat in delivering the draft policy in its current form.
“The institutional structure proposed by the Policy seeks to overcome the bureaucratic inertia often experienced in processing investor applications. Once the Policy is approved by Cabinet, we look forward to applying the ‘Nkwe’ concept in the implementation phase.
The workshop commenced with addresses from the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade, a representative from the EU and a representative from SADC. The second half of the day captured feedback from open discussions held on the content of the policy as well as incorporating the feedback of various stakeholders’ to the document,” Masilela said.
