BY MBONO MDLULI
MBABANE – It is very important for projects to be implemented in time in order to avoid escalation of costs.
This is because the cost of building the Strategic Oil Reserve was around E1.8 billion in 2013 and now, it is around E5.2 billion. This advice was shared in Parliament (both in the House of Assembly and Senate) when Members of Parliament (MPs) and senators (on two consecutive days) passed a Loan Bill authorising Minister of Finance Neal Rijkenberg to secure funding of US$300 million (E5.2 billion) from the Export-Import bank of the Republic of China (Taiwan).
This is a loan that will be used to construct the much-talked-about Strategic Oil Reserve. Minister of Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) Savannah Maziya made a submission during an intense debate on this matter in the House of Assembly on May 27, 2025. This debate lasted for about three hours and 48 MPs participated. Maziya submitted that it would be important for the country to implement this project now.
The implementation of the project now would save the country on possible price escalations in future. Maziya further made the same submissions during another intense debate on the same matter at Senate a day later (May 28, 2025). In this debate, nine senators participated and close to an hour was spent deliberating this matter. Maziya thanked the senators for passing the Loan Bill and stated that the project had to be implemented now because deferring it for the future, in the name of saving money, could move the country into more costs.
During the House of Assembly debate on the matter, it also transpired that the project had to start way back in 2013, when His Majesty King Mswati III went to Phuzumoya to cut the sod, signifying that he had blessed the project. Somntongo MP Sandile Nxumalo submitted that in 2013, the project was at the magnitude of around E1.8 billion. Nxumalo stated how dangerous deferring such projects could be, in terms of costs.
Mbabane East MP Welcome Dlamini, who also supported the project, said he was initially skeptical on implementing this project. However, after attending several workshops on this project, he got converted into supporting this project, like many of his fellow MPs. After his conversion, Dlamini said he was reminded of his time when he had to take part in a debate during his school days.
The debate was about the construction of the Mbabane-Manzini highway. Dlamini informed the House that he was on the side of those who were against the construction of the highway and his team won the debate, because they had strong points that impressed their judges at that debate. However, when looking at the present situation concerning the road, whose construction he was against, he was a bit embarrassed.
He said he wondered why he was against the construction of the road because right now, it was already getting congested, as the number of motorists who used it was increasing. This showed that the road infrastructure was needed at the time and deferring it in the name of saving money could cost the country more today.
Dlamini further took comfort from the fact that Taiwan was the one that was helping the country in the construction of the Strategic Oil Reserve. Because of this, Dlamini said the loan repayment condition would not be stringent for the country, as Taiwan was a good friend to Eswatini.
