BY NONCEDO SHABANGU
MBABANE – The Baphalali Eswatini Red Cross Society has launched a three day training program to equip local leaders from four new chiefdoms in the Shiselweni region with essential skills in land and water management.
The training, which runs from October 22-24, 2025, aims to improve food security by ensuring the sustainable use of natural resources. The initiative is part of the Enhancing Livelihoods in the Sub-Saharan Africa-Eswatini (ELISSA) project, supported by the British Red Cross, and is being held at Bethel Court. The four new chiefdoms participating are Nkhungwini, Tibondzeni, Mbangweni, and Nkomonye.
Equipping Leaders for Resource Preservation
The main purpose of the training is to equip these community leaders on key environmental challenges, focusing specifically on land and water management, erosion and deforestation control, and wetland preservation by educating them on the importance of natural resources and their roles in managing them.
Facilitators from the Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources, Tinkhundla, and Tourism & Environmental Affairs are leading the sessions. They are educating leaders on the importance of natural resources and providing them with skills to support the improved management of all resources, including wetlands.
In addition to technical skills, the community leaders were strongly encouraged to involve young people in community development initiatives. This focus on Youth Inclusion is intended to ensure the sustainability of the resource management practices in the future.
The training, held at Bethel Court and supported by the British Red Cross, is being run by facilitators from several government ministries, including the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Natural Resources, the Ministry of Tinkhundla, and the Ministry of Tourism & Environmental Affairs. These experts are not only educating leaders on the importance of natural resources but are also equipping them with practical skills to provide support for improved management of all natural resources, including the area’s crucial wetlands.
Courtesy Pic)
