By Sibusisekile Ndlangamandla
MANZINI – Investors looking to establish businesses in Eswatini are being offered a simpler and more coordinated route through processes that have traditionally required engagements with several institutions, as the Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority (EIPA) strengthens its Business One-Stop Shop (BOS).
The initiative, which is being showcased at the Eswatini International Trade Fair (EITF), brings together key services needed by investors when setting up and operating businesses in the country.
Instead of investors having to navigate different offices and processes on their own, the Business One-Stop Shop is designed to coordinate services such as company registration, trading licences, work permits and visas.
EIPA Board Chairperson Muzi Siyaya said simplifying these procedures was important because attracting investors into the country was only the beginning of the investment journey.
Once investors show interest in Eswatini, he said, they must also be assisted to establish their operations, overcome administrative hurdles and position themselves for sustainable growth.
“The Business One-Stop Shop, or BOS, is EIPA’s flagship investor facilitation initiative,” Siyaya said.
He explained that the initiative was established in response to His Majesty King Mswati III’s directive to make it easier for investors to enter the Eswatini market and conduct business.
The programme therefore seeks to create a more investor-friendly environment by reducing unnecessary delays and improving coordination between the different services businesses require.
For an investor, particularly one entering Eswatini for the first time, having several important services brought under one coordinated system can make the difference between an investment proposal remaining on paper and an actual business operation being established.
During the EITF, EIPA has taken the service directly to the trade fair, giving investors and businesspeople an opportunity to access assistance while also exploring possible partnerships.
The authority is further facilitating business-to-business and buyer-seller engagements between international exhibitors and local companies.
These engagements are expected to give local businesses an opportunity to connect with potential partners, suppliers and buyers while exposing international exhibitors to opportunities available within the Eswatini economy.
“This investment facilitation in practice is removing friction, connecting businesses, and accelerating decisions,” Siyaya said.
The approach reflects EIPA’s broader strategy of ensuring that investment promotion does not end with attracting companies into the country, but extends to helping those businesses establish themselves, grow and contribute meaningfully to the economy.
Siyaya said EIPA’s mandate was closely linked to enterprise development, increasing exports and creating sustainable employment opportunities for emaSwati.
For the country, successful investment facilitation carries wider economic benefits because businesses that are able to establish and expand their operations can create jobs, purchase goods and services locally, strengthen supply chains and open opportunities for smaller enterprises.
EIPA is also working closely with the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade to ensure that its investment facilitation programmes remain aligned with government’s broader economic development objectives.
The EITF has meanwhile provided the authority with an important platform to demonstrate how investment facilitation can work in practice.
Through its international pavilion, EIPA is providing what it describes as a one-stop sourcing and engagement platform, particularly for traders and small and medium enterprises looking for business opportunities and commercial partnerships.
The objective is for exhibitors and businesses attending the trade fair to walk away with more than business cards and contacts.
EIPA wants the connections established during the event to develop into meaningful commercial relationships, supply agreements, partnerships and investment opportunities capable of generating economic activity beyond the duration of the trade fair.
The Business One-Stop Shop therefore stands as part of Eswatini’s efforts to make the country increasingly competitive as an investment destination by ensuring that investors are not only welcomed, but are also supported throughout the process of turning investment intentions into operational businesses.
With investors increasingly considering factors such as efficiency and ease of doing business when making investment decisions, EIPA’s coordinated approach places investor facilitation at the centre of the country’s efforts to attract businesses capable of contributing to economic growth, exports and sustainable job creation.
