BY MBONO MDLULI
MBABANE – The World Food Programme (WFP) has committed to work together with Eswatini to ensure that the country realises its vision of attaining food security.
The commitment was made yesterday (Tuesday, December 3, 2024) when Prime Minister Russell Mmiso Dlamini met with new WFP Regional Director for Southern Africa Eric Perdison, at the Private and Cabinet Office. Also present at the meeting was WFP Eswatini Head of Office Deepak Shah.
According to information from the Prime Minister’s Office, the meeting focused on the significance of bolstering institutional capacities for sustainable development through agriculture value chains, transformational “mega” projects and social protection systems.
Discussions also included issues of disaster risk management, early warning systems and strategic grain reserves, amongst others, reaffirming the mutual commitment by both parties to ensure food security in the Kingdom of Eswatini.
Eswatini Government, through the Ministry of Agriculture, is working towards ensuring that the country attains food security. If things go according to plan, Government wants to ensure that in two years from now, the country attains food security. The premier told Members of Parliament (MPs) that the Ministry of Agriculture had given itself two years to make that achievement. However, the premier mentioned that such a target could be met when the Ministry was given the support it would need. The prime minister made this statement in the House of Assembly during the debate of the 2023 to 2028 Government Policy Statement on October 17, 2024.
Meanwhile, the prime minister also met received a courtesy visit from Paul Kenward, the CEO of Associated British Foods (ABF), the parent company of Ubombo Sugar Limited. The meeting took place on Monday (December 2, 2022) at the Private and Cabinet Offices. During that meeting, the PM expressed Government’s gratitude to ABF for their significant confidence in the country’s economy, which he said was demonstrated through a substantial investment of E1.5 billion into a power cogeneration project.
This investment aims to increase Ubombo Sugar’s power export capacity to the national grid from 17MW to 40 MW. The project is expected to be commissioned by April 2027, showcasing the Government’s commitment to enhancing energy security through increased private sector participation.
In addition to the cogeneration project, the PM acknowledged an additional investment of E1.3 billion aimed at expanding mill capacity to process sugar cane from the LUSIP development. This expansion is anticipated to benefit numerous smallholder cane growers and create employment opportunities within the value chain.
The combined investments from both projects are projected to generate approximately 600 jobs at peak and allocate around E200 million for local contractors, further stimulating the local economy.
Moreover, the PM appreciated Ubombo Sugar’s ongoing investments in health and education facilities in the Big Bend area, highlighting their commitment to community development. The company has also been recognised as the overall Best Tax Contributor for 2024, having remitted E500 million in total contributions, which underscores their dedication to tax compliance and economic support.
