– MPs debate adoption as PM cites 16 000 jobs, E30bn investments, 90% drug availability
BY MBONGENI NDLELA
LOBAMBA – Prime Minister Russell Mmiso Dlamini has mounted a detailed, numbers-driven defence of his “disruptive leadership” approach, telling Parliament that challenging the old way of doing things has already produced measurable gains in jobs, healthcare, investment, infrastructure and service delivery.
Members of Parliament on Monday discussed the adoption of the Prime Minister’s response to Private Members’ Motion 07/2026, which had challenged him to explain how his disruptive style of leadership fits within the Tinkhundla system, collective Cabinet responsibility and the delivery of services to emaSwati.
The motion was moved by Mbabane East MP Welcome Dlamini and seconded by MP Charles Ndlovu recently.
At the centre of the debate is an important question: Is disruptive leadership compatible with a system built around consensus and collective decision-making?
The Prime Minister’s answer is emphatically yes.
In his response, Dlamini described disruptive leadership not as disorder or disregard for established institutions, but as a deliberate attempt to challenge complacency, increase the speed of Government and demand measurable results.
He said it was leadership that challenged entrenched norms through innovation, calculated risk and principled decision-making.
According to Dlamini, Government could not continue doing things at the same pace and in the same way while expecting Eswatini to compete in a rapidly changing world.
“When His Majesty issued the Nkwe directive, he was commanding Government to disrupt the ordinary manner of doing things, which has too often been painstakingly slow,” the Prime Minister stated.
“He was not merely directing us to quicken our step; he was commanding us to rise and run.”
Dlamini argued that his approach was firmly rooted in His Majesty King Mswati III’s national transformation vision and did not undermine the Tinkhundla system.
Instead, he said urgency, efficiency and decisive leadership could strengthen the system by ensuring that Government programmes translated into tangible benefits for ordinary emaSwati.
To support his argument, the Prime Minister placed a long list of Government achievements before Parliament.
Among them was the creation of more than 16 000 jobs since the Administration took office, with approximately 11 000 reportedly filled by young people.
The national unemployment rate, according to the report, declined from 35.4% to 33.5%.
Government also cited investments exceeding E30 billion, while 500 hectares of land have been allocated for the proposed Taiwan Innovation Park at Phocweni.
The project is expected to attract about US$6 billion in investments across high-value industries and potentially create around 10 000 additional jobs.
Healthcare was highlighted as another area where the Administration believes its approach has produced visible change.
Drug availability in public health facilities was reported to have increased from about 30% when the Administration assumed office to around 90% currently.
The report also points to Eswatini’s continued achievement of the global 95-95-95 HIV targets, the introduction of injectable Lenacapavir PrEP, establishment of the Eswatini Medical Supplies Agency and progress towards a private oncology hospital in Manzini.
On the cost of living, Dlamini said inflation had fallen from 4% in 2024 to 2.6%, while the poverty rate had declined from 58.9% to 53.5%.
Government further reported the construction of 1 033 houses for vulnerable families across the country.
Support for tertiary students was also increased, with an additional 1 000 scholarship beneficiaries and monthly allowances rising from E1 690 to E2 000.
Infrastructure development featured prominently in the response.
Since November 2023, Government reported that 889.65 kilometres of roads had been bladed, while 21 concrete roads, 33 footbridges and 23 low-level bridges had been constructed through the Micro Projects Programme.
The Administration said 31 water supply schemes implemented through Micro Projects were directly benefiting 23 793 emaSwati, while 12 electricity schemes had connected another 1 228 households.
The Mpakeni Dam Project was reported to have reached 51% completion.
Dlamini also pointed to the distribution of more than E471 million through the Regional Development Fund, reconstruction of 11 Tinkhundla centres damaged during the 2021 unrest and the provision of free internet connectivity at more than 40 Tinkhundla centres.
Tourism was presented as another bright spot, with visitor arrivals surpassing the one-million mark, tourism expenditure reaching E1.174 billion and the sector sustaining more than 74 400 direct jobs.
Government also said approximately E1 billion had been secured to connect 1 031 public facilities to digital infrastructure, covering 859 schools, 134 health facilities and communities in 38 Tinkhundla.
In the Public Service, the Administration cited completion of the long-awaited salary review after eight years without an adjustment, alongside the resolution of the Phase II salary review for junior security officers.
The Prime Minister acknowledged that Government had not solved every challenge.
Fiscal constraints, lengthy legislative processes and external dependencies remained obstacles, he said.
However, he maintained that the Administration had begun demonstrating what could happen when Government shifted from routine administration towards measurable delivery.
He also defended collective decision-making in Cabinet, explaining that disruptive leadership did not mean ministers were excluded from decisions.
Cabinet continued to use weekly and special meetings, retreats and other structures to reach collective decisions, including a 2026 mid-term Cabinet retreat whose declaration was subsequently made public.
For Dlamini, therefore, consensus should not become an excuse for Government paralysis.
“Democracy and consensus do not imply the abdication of leadership,” he argued.
The Prime Minister ultimately framed disruptive leadership as a tool for accelerating the Nkwe Programme of Action rather than overturning Eswatini’s system of governance.
As MPs considered the adoption of the report on Monday, the debate moved beyond the meaning of the word “disruptive”.
It became a wider assessment of whether a faster, more demanding and results-focused Government can coexist with traditional consultation and collective responsibility.
Dlamini’s position is that the two are not opponents.
His case before Parliament is that disruption, when measured by jobs created, medicines reaching hospitals, roads improved, homes built and investments secured, can become an instrument of national transformation.
