Swaziland
Newsletter No. 929 – 5 June 2026
News from and about Swaziland, compiled by Global Aktion, Denmark (www.globalaktion.dk) in collaboration with Swazi Media Commentary (www.swazimedia.blogspot.com), and sent to all with an interest in Swaziland - free of charge. The newsletter and past editions are also available online on the Swazi Media Commentary blogsite.
eSwatini
braces for refugee influx from South Africa
By
Timothy Simelane, Times of eSwatini, 1 June 2026
One of the marches against illegal foreigners in SA. (Credit: IOL) |
MANZINI: Eswatini may be forced to
accommodate a high number of illegal immigrants fleeing the discrimination
upsurge in neighbouring South Africa.
The illegal immigrants in SA have been
given an ultimatum of June 30 to leave the republic or face forced removal
which may manifest in the form of violence.
Though some people say they are already
seeing a few immigrants in some townships and urban areas of the kingdom, this
is yet to be verified. The war against illegal immigrants is being waged by a
group that calls itself the March and March, led by Jacinta Ngobe,
Phakel’umthakathi and amaBhinca King Ngizwe Mchunu.
Human Rights Lawyer Sipho Gumedze said
Eswatini is a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention and have no choice but
to accept them.
Gumedze said the country has been dealing
with refugees for over 40 years as there are camps at Malindza and Ndzevane.
“As signatories of the convention, we’ve no option but to accommodate all those
who will have a credible story and recognised by the UNCHR,” Gumedze said.
This follows that there have been comments
insinuating that Eswatini could experience an increase in the number of
undocumented migrants crossing its borders, should xenophobic violence in South
Africa intensify.
Gumedze said people fleeing conflict,
persecution or instability often seek safety in neighbouring countries, making
Eswatini a potential destination for those displaced by the unrest.
According to the Gumedze, asylum seekers
and other vulnerable migrants should be treated in line with humanitarian and
international legal principles, particularly where their movement has been
driven by circumstances beyond their control.
He further stressed the importance of
maintaining a compassionate response to displacement, arguing that regional
solidarity has historically played a crucial role in assisting populations
affected by political and social crises.
While acknowledging that any significant
influx would place pressure on available resources, Gumedze said existing
refugee facilities could provide temporary accommodation for some arrivals,
should the need arise. Meanwhile, Communications Officer in the Ministry of
Home Affairs, Mlandvo Dlamini said the ministry will only accommodate
immigrants who have followed all the necessary procedures and have the
requisite paperwork.
To read more of this report, click
here
eSwatini’s
traditional healers are now first responders for immunisation
By
Nokukhanya Musi–Aimienoho, Vaccines Work, 1 June 2026
Eighty percent of people in Eswatini
see traditional healers first. Mahlala Enginini is one of them, and she’s
making sure to funnel them to vaccination centres.
In a country where the vast majority of
people seek out traditional healers before trained medical providers, people
like Mahlala Enginini are a powerful ally to the immunisation system
The healer is one of 107 to have been
trained up as a “bridge” to the conventional public health system. In addition
to throwing bones to consult ancestors and lighting herbs with purifying
powers, she now checks for fevers and consults vaccination records.
It’s a role she’s glad to perform. “I’ve
seen families do lose their children too many times,” she told VaccinesWork.
The distant crowing of the cockrel can be
heard in the bustling informal settlement of New Village in Eswatini, as
52-year-old traditional healer Gertrude Ginindza kneels down on a grass mat to
burn impepho, the Helichrysum herb.
Smoke fills the hut, which is stacked high
in every corner with tins and containers: some rusted, some plastic, all filled
with ground roots, dried leaves, bark and varying concoctions.
As an immunisation champion, Mahlala
Enginini now checks on more than the spirits. She checks health cards for
missed doses, foreheads for fever, chests for rattles, arms for BCG scars and
more.
This is a typical morning for Ginindza,
known in her community as Mahlala Enginini – a name given to her by the
ancestors – as she readies herself to receive the first patients of the day.
It’ll be a long time yet before the gates at the nearest clinic in Sidvokodvo
open.
Most mornings, the majority of her
patients are mothers and grandmothers who come with young children for ritual
steaming and spiritual cleansing.
However, since last year, her
consultations have taken on another purpose.
Mahlala Enginini is one of 107 traditional
healers from across Eswatini’s four regions to have been trained up by the
Ministry’s Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) to help strengthen vaccine
uptake. She now plays a critical role, bridging the gap between families and
healthcare facilities – a responsibility she takes seriously.
"When was the child last
vaccinated?" Mahlala Enginini asks. It is the most important question, one
that crosses the divide from the hut to the clinic, from tradition to modern
medicine.
In the tiny Southern African nation, some
45% of all children are classified as orphaned or vulnerable, according to
UNICEF’s 2023 Situation Analysis. 84% of children have received all three doses
of the basic diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis-containing vaccine, while 85%
have received the first of two recommended doses of measles vaccines, per WHO/UNICEF estimates.
As an immunisation champion, Mahlala
Enginini now checks on more than the spirits. She checks health cards for
missed doses, foreheads for fever, chests for rattles, arms for BCG scars and
more.
She doesn’t replace the clinic, but
carries it into the huts. Trust follows her: 80% of the 1.2 million Emaswati
consult traditional healers first.
 |
Mahlala Enginini
May
Day mayhem might put eSwatini on ILO agenda
By Nokuphila
Haji, eSwatini Observer, 1 June 2026
Commissioner of Labour Kingdom Mamba says
the events leading to the non-commemoration of International Workers’ Day may
add weight to the possibility of Eswatini being discussed during the 114th
International Labour Conference.
The conference is scheduled to commence
today in Geneva, Switzerland. Mamba stated that as per the list issued on April
30, Eswatini was not among the countries scheduled for discussion. However, he
stated that the final list of countries to be discussed was expected to be
issued during the first week of the conference, which is this week.
This was shared by Mamba yesterday.
On
May 1, Shiselweni Regional Administrator Themba Masuku sought
an application stopping the Trade Union Congress of Swaziland (TUCOSWA) from
hosting its 2026 International Workers’ Day (May Day) celebrations, which were
planned for Hlatikhulu, as they did not have permission from the local
authorities.
However, the Federation of Eswatini Trade
Unions (FESWATU) was able to proceed with its May Day celebration in Nhlangano.
Mamba further confirmed that a delegation
from Eswatini was attending the 114th International Labour Conference (ILC),
which will be held from June 1 to 12 in Geneva, Switzerland. He said the
Eswatini delegation departed on Friday and will return on June 14.
He said the delegation is composed of 12
delegates in total: six government delegates, three employers’ delegates and
three workers’ delegates.
Mamba added that Business Eswatini has two
delegates due to being the most representative employers’ organisation, and one
delegate is from the least representative employers’ organisation.
“TUCOSWA has two delegates due to being
the most representative workers’ organisation, and one delegate is from the
least representative workers’ organisation,” he said.
Over
70 000 disabled emaSwati excluded from schools
By
Khaya Simelane, eSwatini News, 30 May 2026
MBABANE: For years, Eswatini's commitment
to inclusive education has largely existed in policy documents, international
conventions and ministerial speeches promising that no child would be left
behind.
However, inside classrooms across the
country, a far harsher reality continues to unfold quietly.
A newly-published study by the University
of Eswatini (UNESWA) Associate Professor and Dean of Education, Professor
S'lungile Thwala, has revealed deep cracks within the country's education
system. The research shows that more than half of emaSwati with disabilities
have no formal education, despite years of reforms aimed at promoting
inclusion. The study, published on 16 February this year, paints a picture of
exclusion, inaccessible schools, underprepared teachers and persistent social
stigma that continues to keep thousands of children with disabilities out of
classrooms.
According to disability statistics cited
in the research and supported by national education reports, persons with
disabilities constitute between 13 and 16 per cent of Eswatini's population.
Using the 2017 Population and Housing
Census estimates, this translates to between 146 000 and 176 000 people.
Of these, approximately 52 per cent
reportedly have no formal education. In practical terms, this means more than
70 000 emaSwati with disabilities may never have meaningfully entered the
country's education system.
These figures contrast sharply with the
country's commitment to Sustainable Development Goal Four (SDG 4), which
promotes equitable and quality education for all.
Thwala's study, titled 'From Policy to
Practice: Eswatini Perspective on the Implementation of Inclusive Education
Policy', examined policy documents, ministry reports and local research
spanning more than two decades.
The research concluded that inclusive
education in Eswatini remains largely aspirational, with a widening gap between
government policy and classroom realities. Children with disabilities continue
to be excluded from schools, hidden from public life or pushed through an
education system that is neither designed nor adequately prepared to
accommodate them.
At the centre of the problem, Thwala
identified what she described as a 'policy–practice gap'. Although the Ministry
of Education and Training adopted the Education Sector Policy and the Special
Education Policy in 2018 to guarantee equal educational opportunities,
implementation remains weak.
154
teen pregnancies recorded in Sandleni clinics
By Nokuphila
Haji, eSwatini Observer, 3 June 2026
A total of 154 teenage pregnancies were
recorded in two clinics under Sandleni constituency last year.
National Executive Director of the
National Emergency Response Council on HIV and AIDS (NERCHA) Dr Nondumiso Ncube
urged young people under the inkhundla to abstain.
Ncube made the call while addressing
residents during Prime Minister Russell Mmiso Dlamini’s tour of
government-funded projects in the area.
The director reminded the public that HIV
remained a public health threat in the country, thus required everyone’s
commitment to strengthen prevention and viral suppression efforts.
She said as an organisation that
coordinates HIV response, they had noted trends in Sandleni Inkhundla that
could contribute to new infections.
Dr Ncube revealed that data collected in
the constituency showed children dropping out of school and teenagers falling
pregnant.
She said the 2025 statistics for school
dropouts were concerning with 59 pupils having dropped out of primary school,
while 41 dropped out of high school.
The director said according to the data
from the two health facilities (Jericho and Nhletjeni clinics), 154 children
between the ages of 10 and 19 fell pregnant last year.
From these children four of them were
between 10 and 14 while 150 were between 15 and 19 years.
To read more of this report, click
here
https://www.eswatiniobserver.com/154-teen-pregnancies-recorded-in-sandleni-clinics/
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