BY SIFISO NHLABATSI
MBABANE– Eswatini has secured another key leadership role in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU), with Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Finance Vusi Dlamini set to chair the bloc’s Finance, Risk and Audit Committee (FRAC).
The appointment was announced by SACU Executive Secretary Dumisani E. Masilela in a press release, confirming the annual rotation of the customs union’s leadership among its member states. The new leadership takes effect from July 15, 2026, with Botswana assuming the overall chairmanship of SACU.
Masilela is another Liswati who officially assumed his duties on March 1, 2026 at SACU, becoming the first Liswati to substantively hold the SACU Executive Secretary position.
Dlamini will take over as Chairperson of the Finance, Risk and Audit Committee from Botswana’s Secretary for Macroeconomic and Financial Policy, Dr Sayed O. Timuno.
The committee is one of SACU’s key governance structures, responsible for overseeing financial management, risk governance, internal controls and audit processes to ensure accountability within the regional customs union.
According to Masilela, the chairmanship of the Finance, Risk and Audit Committee is held by the member state that is due to assume the overall SACU chairmanship in the following year. Eswatini’s appointment therefore positions the Kingdom for an even greater leadership role within the regional body in the future.
The announcement comes as Botswana officially takes over the overall SACU chairmanship from South Africa under the organisation’s rotational leadership framework, which allocates the chairmanship among member states in alphabetical order for a 12-month period.
Botswana will hold the chairmanship from July 15, 2026, to July 14, 2027.
As part of the leadership changes, Botswana President Advocate Duma Gideon Boko becomes Chairperson of the SACU Summit, succeeding South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Botswana’s Vice-President and Minister of Finance, Ndaba Nkosinathi Gaolathe, also assumes the chairmanship of the SACU Council of Ministers from South Africa’s Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana.
In addition, Botswana’s Secretary for Macroeconomic and Financial Policy, Dr Sayed O. Timuno, takes over as Chairperson of the SACU Commission from South Africa’s Deputy Director-General of Trade in the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, Ambassador Xolelwa Mlumbi-Peter.
While Botswana assumes the overall leadership of the customs union, Eswatini’s appointment to lead the Finance, Risk and Audit Committee places the Kingdom at the centre of safeguarding SACU’s financial integrity. The committee plays a crucial role in monitoring the organisation’s finances, strengthening governance systems and ensuring that financial resources are managed transparently and efficiently.
SACU, established in 1910, is the world’s oldest functioning customs union and comprises Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa. The organisation promotes regional trade through a common customs territory and administers the revenue-sharing arrangement that distributes customs and excise receipts among member states.
For Eswatini, Dlamini’s appointment marks another opportunity to influence decision-making within one of Southern Africa’s most significant regional economic institutions, particularly on matters relating to financial governance, accountability and institutional oversight.
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(Courtesy Pic)
