Swaziland
Newsletter No. 939 – 14 August 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.
Dangerous
criminals dumped in eSwatini by United States Donald Trump administration
secretly released
By
Musa Mdluli, Swaziland News, 12 August 2026
MBABANE: The dangerous criminals some who
were previously convicted of child rape, robbery and murder and were
subsequently dumped in Eswatini by the United States (US) Donald Trump
administration as per an agreement signed with the tiny Kingdom, has been
released.
The deportees were recently seen embarking
on a shopping spree this week in the densely populated Matsapha where the
country’s Correctional Facility is situated but, even though some are dangerous
ex-convicts, it has been disclosed that some are law abiding deportees dumped
in the Kingdom of Eswatini merely for allegedly being in the United States
illegally.
Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Prince Simelane told Parliament
that these deportees are not dangerous.
“They are not dangerous it’s just that
they don’t want them in the United States,” the Justice and Constitutional
Affairs Minister told Parliament last week.
It has been disclosed that, some of the
deportees have been released after applying for asylum in the Kingdom of
Eswatini while some are still residing at the Matsapha Correctional Facility
pending repatriation to their respective countries.
The United States signed an agreement with
the Kingdom of Eswatini and subsequently paid about R100million for dumping
dangerous criminals in the southern African country.
Reached for comments by this Swaziland
News, Wandile Dludlu, the Deputy President of Eswatini’s main and largest
liberation movement, the People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) described
the dumping of the dangerous criminals in Eswatini as a political hoax.
“The whole deportees saga is a political
hoax nothing legal nor due process. Tinkhundla, for money will remove their
clothes for the funder to enjoy”, said the PUDEMO Deputy President.
See also
US deportees not serving eSwatini
sentences – govt (eSwatini Positive News)
https://eswatinipositivenews.online/us-deportees-not-serving-eswatini-sentences-govt/
Trapped in eSwatini: The men Trump
deported to a country they had never heard of (Eastern Herald)
https://easternherald.com/2026/08/12/trump-deportees-eswatini-prison-third-country/
By
Sibusiso Dlamini, eSwatini Observer, 9 August 2026
The country is facing a reading crisis,
with thousands of children progressing through the early years of primary
school without mastering the basic literacy skills needed to learn.
A Grade III pupil reads, on average, just
three English words correctly in a minute, according to a 2025 learning
assessment cited by the World Bank. In Siswati, the figure rises to only eight
words per minute.
How far behind that is becomes clearer
when measured against the international measure of where children are expected
to be at around this stage of their education.
The International Association for the
Evaluation of Educational Achievement’s Progress in International Reading
Literacy Study (PIRLS), regarded as a global standard for measuring reading
achievement, assesses pupils in their fourth year of schooling, an important
transition point when children have typically learnt how to read and are
beginning to read in order to learn.
Singapore emerged as the world’s leading
performer, recording an average of 100 to 120 words correct per minute aloud.
The local figures are contained in an
article published by the World Bank detailing government’s efforts to address
what has become a serious foundational learning problem in the kingdom.
The problem appears to begin early.
According to the World Bank, only 16% of Grade II and III children in the
country demonstrated foundational reading skills in 2022, while just 8%
displayed the expected proficiency in mathematics.
That matters because reading is not a
skill children leave behind during the early years of their education. It
becomes fundamental to almost everything else they are expected to learn as
they progress through school.
 |
A World Bank report reveals that eSwatini is facing a reading crisis, with Grade III pupils reading just three English words per minute on average. [AI Generated Image]
To read more of this report, click
here
https://www.eswatiniobserver.com/eswatini-facing-reading-crisis-world-bank/
By
Sifiso Nhlabatsi, eSwatini Positive News, 12 August 2026
LOBAMBA: The Gini coefficient, a measure
of income inequality, offers one explanation for why economic growth is not
being felt equally by Emaswati.
Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade
Mancoba Khumalo said yesterday that while the country’s economy was growing,
the benefits were concentrated among a relatively small section of the
population, leaving many citizens struggling to participate meaningfully in the
economy.
In explaining the issue in simple terms,
Khumalo told the Senate “Laba labadla lizambane lapondo bancane kakhulu”
meaning that those eating from the economic pot are too few.
The minister was representing Minister of
Economic Planning and Development Dr Tambo Gina, during the ministry’s
appearance before the Senate to present the first quarter performance report
for the 2026/27 financial year.
One of the key issues raised by Senators
was whether the economic growth figures being reported are translating into
meaningful improvements in the lives of ordinary Emaswati. Senator Dr Stukie
Patricia Motsa questioned whether the growth rates being presented truly
reflect the economic realities experienced by citizens on the ground.
Responding to the concern, Minister
Khumalo acknowledged that income inequality remains a significant challenge. He
explained that while the economy may grow, the benefits of that growth are not
always distributed equally, meaning that those who are already financially
stable may experience the benefits more readily than vulnerable households. He
noted that this remains an issue requiring continued attention as Government
works towards more inclusive economic growth.
To read more of this report, click
here
Water,
sanitation and hygiene for every child
UNICEF
eSwatini, 10 August 2026
Did you know? Over 55,000 people in
Eswatini have no toilets and practise open defecation.
Did you know? Simple hand hygiene habits,
such as washing hands with running clean water and soap, can reduce diarrhoeal
diseases by 33%.
Did you know? More than 300 children under
five die from diarrhoeal diseases in Eswatini every year.
Did you know? In Eswatini, diarrhoeal
disease, driven by unsafe water and sanitation, remains a leading killer of
young children.
Every June, Eswatini joins the rest of the
continent in marking the Day of the African Child (DAC). This year’s
commemoration carried a message that could not be more fundamental: a child’s
right to clean water, a safe toilet and the means to stay clean and healthy.
Eswatini recognizes June as children’s month and uses it to intensify advocacy
on children’s issues- a month of advocacy and action for children.
The Day of the African Child was
established in 1991 by the Organisation of African Unity, now the African
Union, to honour and advance children’s rights across the continent. For 35
years it has served as an annual moment of reflection and advocacy, with a
theme chosen each year by the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and
Welfare of the Child. For 2026, that theme is “Ensuring universal access to
water, sanitation and hygiene for every child.” In Eswatini, June was observed
as a month-long advocacy campaign around this theme, led by the Children’s
Services Department in the Deputy Prime Minister’s office, ministry of
education, ministry of natural resources and energy, ministry of Tinkhundla,
NGO children’s consortium, municipalities and UNICEF.
Water, sanitation and hygiene, known as
WASH, are not conveniences. They are the foundation on which a child’s health,
dignity, education and protection all rest. Yet across Eswatini, that
foundation remains out of reach for far too many children.
The objectives for this year’s advocacy
month were clear: embed WASH in the policies and budgets that shape children’s
lives, raise awareness of WASH as a right, ensure that girls, children with
disabilities and other vulnerable groups are included in WASH planning, and
hold leaders accountable through concrete, measurable commitments.
To read more of this report, click
here
https://www.unicef.org/eswatini/stories/childrens-month
First
medical detox, rehabilitation centre opens
eSwatini
Observer, 10 August 2026
The first medical detoxification and
rehabilitation centre in Eswatini, City of Refuge has officially opened its
doors to assist people struggling with substance abuse.
The centre has three locations in the
country, with its head office in Ezulwini and additional facilities in Matsapha
and Mkhondvo.
City of Refuge provides rehabilitation
services to people aged between 12 and 78 years with the aim of helping
individuals overcome substance abuse, rebuild their lives and make positive
changes.
City of Refuge Director Bishop Ronnie
Doorsamy said the centre’s establishment in Eswatini is about bringing healing
and transformation to people affected by substance abuse.
He said the organisation had come to Eswatini with the goal of providing
healing and helping people recover from addiction.
The rehabilitation programme runs for
between 21 and 28 days during which clients receive support as they work
towards recovery.
In addition to its rehabilitation
services, City of Refuge also has a college where young people can undergo two
years of TVET vocational training.
The programme is intended to equip young
people with practical skills that can help them become self-reliant and improve
their future prospects.
SWAZI
MEDIA COMMENTARY
Find us:
Blog: https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/142383985790674
