MINISTER MANQOBA IN FRONT ROW OF JOB CREATION AGENDA

MBABANE – The Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade, Manqoba Khumalo, says he wants the public to hold him and his ministry accountable for the job creation agenda in the country.
In an exclusive interview with the Times Business Desk, the minister said they have set up a job agenda as their theme for the next five years.Khumalo, who has just come in as the  Minister of Commerce for the second term, hailed His Majesty King Mswati III for reappointing him to the same portfolio.He said this was quite a huge task, particularly when one takes into account the concerns raised by emaSwati during the People’s Parliament (Sibaya) last year about job creation. He said his ministry is at the heart of the job creation agenda as requested by the people during Sibaya. He said his ministry is not only focussing on manufacturing jobs but also cross-cutting.

Khumalo said as a ministry, they have a strategic focus under the job agenda for the next five years to deal with all the hurdles that stop announced projects from commencing.
He said it was noted that the Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority (EIPA), working with all the other government agencies, is able to attract many businesses into the country. He said, however, one way or another, some projects get aborted or stopped by reasons beyond one’s control.

Investment

He said therefore, they have realised that these big projects that are meant to make a meaningful impact in the country require them as a ministry to focus on what is stopping them from taking off. Khumalo highlighted that one of those projects include the construction of the Manzini Mall, as the sod was cut last year but a few months later, the project still had not started. He said they then looked at what was the issue stopping this project. “I am proud to say we are focusing on unlocking these things that prevent our pipeline projects from commencing and create jobs,” he said.

The minister said there are quite a lot of projects coming up. He highlighted this project, which includes the aforementioned Manzini Mall under the Retail sector. This is a E2 billion investment that is set to create at least around 1 500 jobs. He said another massive project is the Manzini Arch that they have recently commissioned, which is set to create at least 1 200 jobs. The Manzini Arch comprises a commercial and hospitality development. This project will see the investor being the African Alliance, pumping in at least E4 billion into the economy. He said this was an important project, as it was not common to see a local investor pumping so much money into the economy.

“We have seen a number of projects coming up in the energy sector,” he said. Khumalo said under this sector, EIPA and his ministry were assisting the Eswatini Energy Regulatory Authority (ESERA) and Eswatini Electricity Company (EEC) to get investors in this sector in line with meeting all the requirements in order to commence working on the proposed 75 MW renewable energy projects as recently announced. Khumalo said he was also excited about upcoming mining projects. He said there are several mining licences that have been issued to different companies that will help this country grow economically.

He highlighted that one of the projects is the Mhlume coal mine, which has already started operating. “Right now, mining contributes less than 2 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) because of the Maloma Mine. “You can imagine if we can double or triple that. There is another mine called Malindza Colliery; they are on the verge of completing all the requisite processes so that they can start mining,” said Khumalo. He added that in the textile sector, there is Gamula Factory, where they have found an investor who is going to start production soon. He added that the Ndzevane Factory is also done, where 1 000 people will be employed around that area. He added that the Jonsson Workwear  factory in Nhlangano will also be starting soon, hopefully by the end of January next year.

Post your comment

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Add your comments:

Please enter the code you see in the image:

Image:

Code: