BY SIFISO NHLABATSI
MBABANE– The Eswatini Youth Enterprise Revolving Fund (YERF) is demonstrating how access to finance can turn youthful ambition into growing businesses.
This has been witnessed through a young graduate who could not find a job and turned to poultry farming, to an entrepreneur whose E19 000 loan has helped build a business serving clients beyond Eswatini’s borders.
This emerged on Saturday when the YERF Board of Directors embarked on a tour of businesses that have received financial assistance from the Fund.
The delegation was led by YERF Chief Executive Officer and Fund Manager Mandla A. Nkambule and included Banele Manyatsi, Zibuse Simelane, Mncedisi Nxumalo, Tebesuthu Magagula and Simphiwe Ndabezitha.
The tour took the delegation to several youth-owned enterprises, where beneficiaries shared their journeys, challenges, achievements and ambitions for the future.
YERF is a Category A parastatal established by Government in 2009 in response to the vision of His Majesty King Mswati III. Its mandate is to provide development finance and support to Eswatini’s youth, fostering their inclusive economic participation through innovative, accessible and sustainable entrepreneurship development.
The Fund, which falls under the Ministry of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs, targets young people between the ages of 18 and 35 and seeks to promote youth employment and alleviate poverty.
One of the beneficiaries visited was Sphesihle Groening, founder of Groening and Associates, who received an E19 000 loan.
His business provides tutoring services to high school and tertiary students, research services and assistance with company registrations, among other offerings.
Groening said the business had grown to serve clients in Eswatini, Tanzania, Kenya, Taiwan and other countries, while employing about 19 people. He said the company had assisted approximately 1 210 people, some of whom had since entered the corporate world.
However, Groening said access to funding should be accompanied by stronger support for young entrepreneurs. He called for a strategic partnership between YERF and its beneficiaries and proposed the introduction of a customer journey that would track young people from the moment they first visit the Fund to enquire about assistance.
He also stressed the importance of changing the mindset of young people.
“I cannot not see opportunities,” Groening said, explaining that he had developed a mindset that allowed him to identify possibilities wherever he went.
He encouraged young people to wake up each morning and ask themselves what they could do to improve their circumstances.
“If you wake up and go to the Youth Fund offices, that is something,” he said.
Another beneficiary, Sebe Thwala, turned to entrepreneurship after completing school and failing to secure employment.
With E10 000 in financial assistance from YERF, Thwala established AGAPE Mobile, a business offering both MTN Mobile Money and Eswatini Mobile’s eMali services.
Her spaza business is located near Mbabane Government Hospital and the UNESWA Mbabane Campus.
Thwala said the assistance had enabled her to run a business that sustained her livelihood after the job market failed to provide her with an opportunity.
At Nkhanini, the delegation also visited Phetsile Hlatjwako, who runs Vezokuhle Grocery near the local hall.
Hlatjwako received E42 000 from YERF and has used the funding to grow her entrepreneurial journey.
She said she started with a Mobile Money business before venturing into a salon and later operating a fish-and-chips business. She eventually built the structure from which she now operates her grocery shop.
Hlatjwako said the business was progressing well and that she had not experienced major challenges. She was also able to repay her loan and was already looking towards further expansion.
Her ambitions include opening another salon and venturing into other businesses as opportunities arise.
She said her location was strategically positioned because of the number of national events held around Lobamba, adding that she expected busy periods such as Umhlanga to create more business opportunities.
For Sibusiso Fakudze, entrepreneurship became a new beginning after he lost his job in 2020.
Fakudze, who runs Nkosibona Finger Fried and Baking at Nkhanini, said losing his job did not mark the end of his journey.
Having previously worked in hotels, he decided to use the skills he had acquired in the hospitality industry to build his own business.
He started with a Mobile Money venture before receiving E15 000 in funding from YERF. As more ideas emerged, Fakudze expanded into shisanyama, baking, pizza and other business activities.
He said the support from the Fund helped him to pursue opportunities when his own capital was insufficient.
His wife also joined him in the journey, helping him develop a culture of saving and supporting the growth of the enterprise.
Fakudze said when customers began showing interest in his pizzas, he invested further and built a shelter for customers.
He encouraged young people to be disciplined, have a clear vision and know exactly what they wanted to achieve.
Meanwhile, one of the standout stories of the tour was that of 28-year-old Malungelo Simelane, founder of Malu’s Poultry at Hhukwini.
After graduating and failing to secure employment, Simelane decided to pursue poultry farming and approached YERF for financial support.
He started in 2023 with 500 broilers after receiving an initial E50 000 injection from the Fund. Through reinvestment and a further E60 000 in funding, his operation has grown to three poultry houses with a production capacity of about 6 400 broilers per cycle.
Simelane said 3 200 birds could generate about E192 000 in gross revenue, while production at 6 400 birds could generate approximately E380 000 per cycle.
However, the young entrepreneur stressed that gross revenue should not be confused with profit, as production costs such as feed, chicks, heating, medication, labour, electricity, transport and bird mortality had to be carefully managed.
His growth, he said, had been built on starting small, understanding the market, maintaining good hygiene and biosecurity, keeping proper records, controlling costs and reinvesting in the business.
The stories encountered during the tour painted a common picture, that while access to finance is important, determination, discipline, innovation and a willingness to start small remain equally crucial.
For these young entrepreneurs, YERF funding did not simply provide money. It provided a starting point.
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