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1. Quantifying the Size and Development of the Shadow Economy in Swaziland

Author:
Eswatini Economic Policy Analysis and Research Centre
Publication Date:
03-2019
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Eswatini Economic Policy Analysis and Research Centre (ESEPARC)
Abstract:
The size of the shadow economy has been declining at a slow rate over the past 16 years in Swaziland. The size of the shadow economy was found to be 37.4 % in 2016. This was equivalent to E20.5 billion of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2016. The key drives of the shadow economy in Swaziland were found to be the tax burden (direct and indirect taxation), self-employment, the importance of the agricultural sector and the institutional quality of governance institutions. For the country to fast tract its developmental agenda (Vision 2022), it is important for the country to enact policies that will harness and transition the shadow economy into the mainstream economy by targeting the drivers of the shadow economy locally.
Topic:
Development, Economics, Governance, and GDP
Political Geography:
Africa and Swaziland

2. Capacity profiling and needs assessment of the public service of Swaziland

Author:
Eswatini Economic Policy Analysis and Research Centre
Publication Date:
06-2019
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Eswatini Economic Policy Analysis and Research Centre (ESEPARC)
Abstract:
Governments are constantly under pressure to improve public sector performance and at the same time restrain expenditure growth. Public sector organisations are responsible for providing the necessary public goods and services to the citizens, hence the administration of the public service is traditionally grounded in the achievement of efficiency in the work of its departments in pursuance of goals related to service provision (Manzoor 2014). Some scholars argue that the efficiency of the public sector is key to delivering a ‘smarter state’ capable not only of delivering more for less, but better public services, which requires an evidence-based understanding of what the public service has been able to deliver so far, the drivers of these outcomes and the different options available (Hawkins et al. 2016). Swaziland’s private sector, non-governmental organisations, and the public feel that while the country’s public service is evolving, it is still grappling with finding an ideal management style that will ensure better service provision, but in the process of evolution, service delivery of public goods remains compromised, hence customer satisfaction is low. So what can be done to improve the efficiency and performance of the public service? Analysts argue that implementing e-governance has brought unprecedented efficiencies in the work of government to serve citizens (Manzoor 2014). To achieve this and more, governments are widening their base of development partners who can assist in capacity building for civil servants, and funding for the implementation of its programmes.
Topic:
Development, Governance, Public Sector, and Public Service
Political Geography:
Africa and Swaziland

3. Swaziland Research and Development Statistics: Findings from the 2015/16 Swaziland National Research and Development Survey

Author:
Eswatini Economic Policy Analysis and Research Centre
Publication Date:
06-2019
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Eswatini Economic Policy Analysis and Research Centre (ESEPARC)
Abstract:
For many years, data on Science, Technology, and Research and Development (R&D) indicators in Swaziland have been missing. Not surprisingly, the country has been unable to monitor its progress and performance on scientific and technological development. This is notwithstanding that the Kingdom of Swaziland’s revised National Development Strategy (NDS) (2016) commits the country to drive social and economic development by intensifying efforts and investment into research, innovation, science, and technology. The ultimate goal is to use R&D to inspire large gains in productivity, especially in the agricultural and manufacturing sector (GoS, 2016). The importance attached to R&D in Swaziland is demonstrated in the country’s investment into a science and technology park, which houses both a biotechnology and an innovation park. Around the world, science, technology, and innovation (STI) is acknowledged as a driver of social and economic development and more recently, as a means to attain the sustainable development goals (SDGs). STI indicators are important as a starting point for monitoring progress on scientific and technological development and for formulating responsive STI policies.
Topic:
Civil Society, Development, Research, and Social Order
Political Geography:
Africa and Swaziland

4. The State of the National System of Innovation in Swaziland

Author:
Eswatini Economic Policy Analysis and Research Centre
Publication Date:
03-2018
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Eswatini Economic Policy Analysis and Research Centre (ESEPARC)
Abstract:
Swaziland, in the National Development Strategy (NDS), aspires to achieve development through investments in science, technology, and innovation (STI). However, using innovation to uplift the country from poverty and tackle economic growth requires investment in research and experimental development (R&D), human capital development, and the establishment of relevant institutions and governing bodies to direct scientific and technological development which are currently missing. Due to low investments in innovation and R&D, the lack of funding sources, absence of a national STI strategy and R&D agenda, and low collaboration between institutions, the country is struggling to propel STI-driven development. As a result, Swaziland is largely a consumption-based economy, with high imports and low exports, and the domestic industry is underdeveloped. The implication is that as economies grow and become more competitive, Swaziland will continue to remain behind. Hence, to use STI to drive social and economic development the country needs to affirm this concession by developing a national STI strategy. Establishing a Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation would enhance the coordination of STI activities and manage the funding and implementation of STI policies.
Topic:
Development, Science and Technology, Economic Growth, and Innovation
Political Geography:
Africa and Swaziland

5. Youth Unemployment in Africa: Capacity Building and Innovative Strategies

Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF)
Abstract:
The aim of this Occasional Paper produced by the African Capacity Building Foundation is to provoke evidence-based discussion, and encourage further investigation on the critical capacity challenges to be addressed to tackle youth unemployment in Africa. The paper assesses the causes and impacts of youth unemployment in Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, and Swaziland. It profiles and characterizes the status and nature of youth unemployment as well as the strategies and programs—and identifies the challenges, implications, and gaps—to find ways to address it. Stakeholder and expert consultations with development partners, government, the private sector, and nongovernmental organizations in addressing youth unemployment were carried out, as such research is crucial for identifying capacity gaps and key policy aspects to address it. The consultations were complemented with a review of success stories and best practices to inform strategies and capacity development interventions aimed to tackle youth unemployment and refine policy approaches toward inclusive, employment-creating, and sustainable economic growth.
Topic:
Development, Economic Growth, Youth, Capacity, Unemployment, Economic Development, and Sustainability
Political Geography:
Africa, South Africa, Swaziland, Namibia, and Botswana

6. 2016 Public Service Customer Satisfaction Parid Assessment Report for the Kingdom of Swaziland

Author:
Eswatini Economic Policy Analysis and Research Centre
Publication Date:
09-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Eswatini Economic Policy Analysis and Research Centre (ESEPARC)
Abstract:
The key objective of providing government services to the citizens is to improve their quality of life and therefore citizens are better positioned to provide feedback on whether government services satisfied their needs. The Ministry of Tinkhundla Administration and Development (MTAD) is an institution established in 2009, mandated with the responsibility of improving efficiency and effectiveness of government service delivery at regional level in Swaziland. The Decentralization Policy of 2006 provides for directives to government and all its agencies to ensure that people access services closer to where they live and that administrative institutions at community level have the requisite capacity to deliver such services, woven together by a combination of cohesive Swazi traditional systems and contemporary modern administrative and governance systems. Against this background, it was deemed important for MTAD to undertake the 2016 Public Service Customer Satisfaction Survey in order to provide a tool for assessing government Ministries that provide public services to citizens. Measuring the satisfaction levels of public service customers is a crucial tool in the determination of the outcome and impact of public service delivery programmes. The systematic customer satisfaction survey was conducted to assess opinions and perceptions of citizens on selected services offered by the government. This survey demonstrated government’s commitment to improving public services through the engagement of citizens at all levels of service delivery.
Topic:
Development, Governance, Public Opinion, and Leadership
Political Geography:
Africa and Swaziland

7. Salt, Sugar, and Malaria Pills: How the Affordable Medicine Facility–malaria endangers public health

Author:
Mohga M Kamal-Yanni
Publication Date:
10-2012
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:
Recent progress in controlling malaria is a major development success. Thanks to external aid and domestic financing the proportion of children in sub - Saharan Africa sleeping under a bed net has increased from 2 per cent to 39 per cent in the last 10 years. This has brought down the number of malaria deaths dramatically in many countries, such as Namibia, Swaziland, Ethiopia, Senegal and Zambia, where deaths have been cut by between 25 and 50 per cent.
Topic:
Development, Health, and Infectious Diseases
Political Geography:
Africa, Ethiopia, Senegal, Zambia, Swaziland, and Namibia

8. Southern Africa: Threats and Capabilities

Author:
Gavin Cawthra
Publication Date:
11-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Peace Institute (IPI)
Abstract:
The southern African region is now generally defined in political terms as those countries that are members of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) (the geographic definition is usually somewhat more limited). Currently there are fifteen member states of the SADC: Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, the Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Topic:
Development, Peace Studies, and Poverty
Political Geography:
Africa, South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, and Swaziland

9. Gender, Local Knowledge, and Lessons Learnt in Documenting and Conserving Agrobiodiversity

Author:
Regina Laub and Yianna Lambrou
Publication Date:
06-2006
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
United Nations University
Abstract:
This paper explores the linkages between gender, local knowledge systems and agrobiodiversity for food security by using the case study of LinKS, a regional FAO project in Mozambique, Swaziland, Zimbabwe and Tanzania over a period of eight years and now concluded. The project aimed to raise awareness on how rural men and women use and manage agrobiodiversity, and to promote the importance of local knowledge for food security and sustainable agrobiodiversity at local, institutional and policy levels by working with a diverse range of stakeholders to strengthen their ability to recognize and value farmers' knowledge and to use gender-sensitive and participatory approaches in their work. This was done through three key activities: capacity building, research and communication. The results of the LinKS study show clearly that men and women farmers hold very specific local knowledge about the plants and animals they manage. Local knowledge, gender and agrobiodiversity are closely interrelated. If one of these elements is threatened, the risk of losing agrobiodiversity increases, having negative effects on food security. Increased productivity, economic growth and agricultural productivity are important elements in poverty reduction. The diverse and complex agroecological environment of Sub-Saharan Africa requires that future efforts be based on more localized solutions while maintaining a global outlook. Food security will have to build much more on local knowledge and agrobiodiversity with a clear understanding of gender implications while keeping in mind the continuously changing global socioeconomic and political conditions.
Topic:
Agriculture, Development, and Gender Issues
Political Geography:
Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, and Swaziland